LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

GIFT  01^ 


Received 
Accession  No. 


9 


.    Class  No. 


MECHANICS  AND  FAITH 


A  STUDY 


SPIRITUAL  TRUTH   IN   NATURE 


CHARLES  TALBOT  PORTER 


THIRD    EDITION    REVISED 


NEW  YORK  &  LONDON 

G.  P.  PUTNAM'S    SONS 


OTTO*  *?•» 

ftjfiviasiTT] 


COPYRIGHT    BV 

G.  P.  PUTNAM'S  SONS 


Press  of 

G.  P.  PUTNAM'S  SONS 
New  York 


How  exquisitely  the  individual  mind  * 

(And  the  progressive  powers  perhaps  no  less 

Of  the  whole  species)  to  the  external  world 

Is  fitted  : — And  how  exquisitely,  too, 

Theme  this  but  little  heard  of  among  men, 

The  external  world  is  fitted  to  the  mind. 

— WORDSWORTH. 


PREFACE. 


What  is  known  to  us  as  matter,  in  its  various  forms  and 
states,  is  commonly  conceived  of  as  something  quite 
distinct  from  force.  In  this  inquiry,  matter  will  be  con- 
sidered to  be  force  itself,  manifested  in  endless  diversity 
of  adaptation  to  our  nature  and  wants. 

The  exposition  of  this  view  will  not,  however,  be 
reached  until  an  advanced  stage  of  the  discussion.  Until 
then  it  will  be  necessary  to  conform  the  language  em- 
ployed to  the  prevailing  idea  of  a  distinction  between 
matter  and  force.  Otherwise  the  truths  which  are  pre- 
sented in  the  earlier  papers  would  not  be  conveyed  with 
clearness. 

This  conception  of  the  identity  of  matter  with  force 
must  be  regarded  as  fundamental  in  true  philosophy. 
In  every  department  of  thought  there  is  to  be  observed 
a  reluctance  to  recognize  the  fact  that  we  are  surrounded 
by  mysteries.  While  in  reality  all  things  pass  the  limit 
of  our  understanding,  there  are  not  wanting  minds  which 
refuse  to  confess  that  any  thing  does  so. 

Instructors  generally  feel  called  upon  to  explain  every 
thing.  In  order  that  they  may  seem  to  do  this,  they 
assume  imaginary  starting-points,  which,  having  been 
devised  either  by  themselves  or  by  their  instructors,  are 
of  course  quite  within  their  comprehension. 


VI  PREFACE. 

The  great  starting-point  is  the  material  atom.  The  be- 
lief in  the  existence  of  the  material  atom,  in  the  large  ex- 
tent to  which  this  gross  conception  still  continues  to  be 
held,  is  the  present  bane  of  philosophy.  This  belief  gives 
to  physical  science  its  materialistic  tendency.  It  provides 
a  limit  at  which  thought  can  be  arrested.  It  opens  the 
door  to  the  revival  of  the  heathen  conception  of  the  atom, 
as  self-existent  and  possessed  of  inherent  activities. 
Many  minds  seem  inclined  to  rest  upon  this  conception 
of  the  material  atom,  as  something  that  can  be  compre- 
hended, and  beyond  which  they  feel  no  impulse  or  incli- 
nation to  look. 

Much  vagueness  of  thought  prevails  respecting  the 
nature  and  functions  of  "  the  reason."  Metaphysicians 
have  described  the  reason  to  be  that  faculty  by  which 
the  mind  intuitively  apprehends  universal  and  necessary 
truths.  The  process  of  reasoning  is  devolved  upon  an- 
other imaginary  faculty,  which  is  distinguished  as  the 
understanding.  Since  those  faculties  have  no  existence, 
except  that  which  the  metaphysicians  have  given  them,  it 
would  seem  as  if  these  authorities  ought  to  be  able  to  fix 
their  respective  .functions.  But  this  distinction  between 
the  reason  and  the  understanding  does  not  make  its  way 
into  popular  use.  For  example,  in  our  English  version  of 
St.  Mark's  Gospel,  the  Christ  says :  "  Are  ye  so  without 
understanding  also?  Do  ye  not  perceive?"  Then  fol- 
lows a  statement  of  a  necessary  and  universal  truth  as  a 
subject  of  apprehension  by  the  understanding.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  popular  mind  can  never  accept  the  idea 
that  the  reason  is  not  employed  in  reasoning.  "  Under- 
standing "  is  a  term  which  is  now  little  used  ;  but  we  hear 
continually  of  the  reason,  which,  at  least  in  popular  esti- 
mation, is  clothed  with  a  vague  and  boundless  authority. 


PREFACE.  Vll 

The  distinction  between  these  terms  seems  to  be  merely 
a  difference  about  words.  It  will  be  the  purpose  here  to 
fix  attention  upon  realities.  The  activity  of  the  mind,  in 
its  unity,  in  reasoning,  will  be  put  in  the  place  of  these 
objective  terms.  Our  view  will  be  made  distinct,  and  it  is 
believed  also  correct,  if  we  shall  conceive  of  all  that  has 
been  embraced  under  either  of  these  terms  as  being  the 
exercise  of  the  mind,  in  the  judicial  modes  of  its  activity. 

With  the  exception  of  abstract  or  ideal  truths  we  dis- 
cover nothing  by  the  process  of  reasoning.  In  reasoning 
we  trace  relations,  discriminate,  generalize,  conclude,  and 
so  determine  our  belief.  These  judgments  we  are  form- 
ing continually,  and  we  always  must  be  forming  them,  on 
the  basis  of  what  appear  to  us  as  facts  in  consciousness. 

Here  arises  the  liability  to  error.  This  liability  to  error 
is  of  two  kinds.  In  the  first  place,  there  is  probably  no 
one  who  is  not,  in  a  greater  or  lesser  degree,  affected  by 
preconceptions  or  erroneous  habits  of  thought,  usually  the 
result  of  education,  so  as  to  be  liable  to  arrive  at  conclu- 
sions which  are  not  warranted  by  the  facts  observed.  And, 
secondly,  it  is  obvious  that,  in  order  to  form  a  correct 
conclusion  by  the  judicial  activity  of  the  mind,  there  must 
be  present  in  consciousness  all  the  facts,  and  nothing  else. 
Otherwise,  the  possession  of  a  perfectly  judicial  mind,  or 
a  mind  capable  of  giving  to  every  fact  seen  in  conscious- 
ness its  due  weight,  would  be  of  no  avail. 

Force,  Truth,  Beauty,  and  Love  are  the  four  spiritual 
realities  which,  in  their  unity,  interpenetrate,  if  indeed 
they  do  not  constitute,  all  material  forms  of  being.  Of 
these,  love  will  be  found  to  be  the  single  primary  reality, 
although,  on  account  of  its  underlying  position,  it  must 
be  the  last  to  be  reached  in  any  investigation.  Force, 
truth,  and  beauty,  in  nature,  are  the  manifestations  or 
expressions  of  love. 


viii  PREFACE. 

These  spiritual  realities  are  revealed  directly  to  the 
spirit  of  man,  while  the  forms  within  which  they  are 
contained  are  made  known  to  him  through  his  physical 
organs  of  perception. 

For  the  sake  of  clearness,  our  perceptions  may  be  con- 
ceived of  as  being  of  two  kinds,  namely,  those  through 
which  we  are  made  aware  of  the  existence  of  what  are 
termed  material  forms  of  being,  and  those  through  which 
we  are  made  aware  of  the  existence  of  the  spiritual  reali- 
ties which  are  manifested  to  us  through  these  forms,  or  of 
which  these  forms  are  to  us  the  sensible  expression. 

If  these  spiritual  realities  in  fact  exist,  then  it  is  evident 
that  they  must  all  be  apprehended  by  us,  equally  at  least 
with  the  physical  forms,  which  then  appear  only  as  the 
media  for  their  manifestation,  or  the  concrete  mode  of 
their  expression,  adapted  to  our  physical  nature,  if  we 

would  avoid  forming  partial  and  superficial  conclusions. 

» 

It  is  through  the  recognition  of  the  truths  above  ex- 
pressed that  the  mind  becomes  able  to  perceive  the  har- 
mony that  exists  between  reason  and  faith. 

I  have  endeavored  to  reach  these  truths  and  to  show 
this  harmony  by  the  aid,  primarily,  of  mechanical  science 
and  the  analogies  which  this  science  affords.  As  such  an 
effort,  these  papers  are  submitted  to  the  judgment  of 
sincere  men. 


SUBJECTS. 


PAGE 

INTRODUCTORY        i 

THE  UNSEEN 6 

THE  CRITERION  OF  TRUTH     .        .        .        .         .        .        .        .  18 

SUPERSTITION 33 

THE  JUDICIAL  SPIRIT 38 

THE  UNITY  OF  THE  MIND      .         .         .        .        .        .         .         .  50 

MECHANICAL  SCIENCE  AND  RATIONALISM       .        .        .        .        .  57 

REVELATION     ...........  70 

THE  REVELATION  OF  OBJECTS  OF  SENSE       .....  74 

COOPERATION 81 

THE  REVELATION  OF  MECHANICAL  TRUTH            ....  87 

THE  REVELATION  OF  IDEAL  TRUTH      ......  95 

MATERIALISM 102 

THE  REVELATION  OF  FORCE  .        .         .        ...        .        .120 

THE  UNITY  OF  PHYSICAL  AND  SPIRITUAL  TRUTH        .        .        .131 

THE  PERCEPTION  OF  SPIRITUAL  REALITIES  BY  RECOGNITION       .  150 

THE  REVELATION  OF  GOD 156 

THE  VERBAL  REVELATION 1 70 

PERFECTION .188 

NATURAL  RELIGION        .........  103 

BEAUTY 228 

SUFFERING       ...........  246 

FAITH       ............  276 

PRAYER 287 


INTRODUCTORY. 


AT  first  view,  mechanics  and  faith  would  seem  to  most 
persons,  perhaps  to  every  one,  to  express  the  opposite 
extremes  of  thought.  Their  association  would  appear  to 
be  the  bringing  together  of  subjects  quite  incongruous, 
between  which  no  relations  can  exist. 

A  little  reflection,  however,  will  enable  us  to  perceive 
that  this  view  cannot  be  the  correct  one,  but  must  be 
only  an  effect  of  our  conventional  habits  of  thought — 
habits  that  have  been  formed  by  a  false  education. 

No  incongruities  are  to  be  discovered  in  nature,  but 
everywhere  harmonies  instead.  No  unrelated  things 
exist,  but  all  things  are  seen  to  be  bound  together  by 
innumerable  relations.  If,  then,  mechanics  and  faith  are 
realities,  if  one  or  the  other  of  them  be  not  a  mere  fig- 
ment of  the  brain,  it  is  certain  that  they  cannot  be  incon- 
gruous and  unrelated,  and  it  is  possible  that  harmonies 
and  relations  of  the  most  intimate  nature  may  exist 
between  them. 

There  is  also  another  line  of  thought  on  which  we  are 
impelled  to  the  same  a  priori  conclusion.  This  reasoning, 
briefly  stated,  is  as  follows  : 

Faith  is  held  by  the  Christian  to  be  the  highest  spiritual 
attainment  of  man,  and  an  attainment  that  is  ultimately 
to  be  reached  by  all  men  on  the  earth.  This  he  believes 
to  be  the  purpose  of  God.  If  this  be  so,  every  thing  must 


2  IN  TROD  UCTOR  Y. 

have  a  direct  relation  to  this  supreme  result.  It  is  not 
supposable  that  any  thing  can  in  reality  antagonize  this 
result.  No  incongruity  can  exist  between  faith  and  any 
other  reality  whatever.  On  the  contrary,  it  must  of 
necessity  be  assumed  that,  in  the  universal  scheme  of 
things,  every  thing  has  been  adapted  to  promote  the 
growth  of  faith  in  the  soul  of  man.  Whenever  the  real 
nature  and  legitimate  influence  of  any  part  of  this  scheme 
come  to  be  perceived,  and  just  in  the  degree  that  this 
nature  and  influence  are  perceived,  we  should  expect  this 
supreme  adaptation  to  appear,  and  to  grow  in  distinctness 
and  prominence. 

In  these  papers  the  attempt  will  be  made  to  show  the 
existence  of  such  a  relation  between  mechanics  and  faith, 
— a  relation  which,  however  we  may  have  been  taught  to 
disregard  it,  is  one  which  the  foregoing  considerations 
make  it  evident  that  we  ought  to  look  for,  and  which  we 
may  find  to  be  of  the  greatest  consequence. 

In  a  book  of  travel  in  England  by  an  American  scholar, 
published  a  few  years  ago,  a  book  of  singular  interest  on 
account  of  the  charm  of  association  with  which  every  spot 
is  invested,  a  quotation  is  made  from  an  address  delivered 
by  Robert  Stephenson,  on  the  completion  of  the  central 
towers  of  the  Britannia  Tubular  Bridge,  across  the  Menai 
Straits,  as  follows : 

"  Mr.  Stephenson  said  :  '  Let  them  not,  any  more  than 
himself,  and  all  who  have  been  connected  with  this  great 
work,  forget  that,  whatever  may  have  been,  or  whatever 
may  be,  the  ability,  science,  intelligence  and  zeal  brought 
to  bear  on  the  creature's  work,  it  is  to  the  Creator  that 
we  should  give  praise  and  thanksgiving ;  for  without  His 
blessing  on  our  works  how  can  we  expect  them  to  pros- 
per?' He  fully  believed  that  Providence  had  been 


IN  TROD  UCTOR  Y.  3 

pleased  to  smile  on  the  undertaking,  and  he  hoped 
that  they  all  with  him  would  endeavor  to  obtain  those 
smiles." 

Upon  this  our  author  remarks :  "  It  is  pleasant  to  see 
so  simple  a  faith  in  a  mind  devoted  to  so  material  a  science 
as  mechanics." 

This  amiable  comment,  so  far  as  it  characterizes  me- 
chanical science,  may,  without  doubt,  be  taken  to  repre- 
sent the  manner  in  which  this  science  has  generally  been 
regarded,  or,  it  would  be  more  correct  to  say,  has  been 
disregarded,  by  men  who  are  ranked  as  thinkers.  They, 
whom  the  world  delights  to  honor  with  this  name,  how- 
ever widely  they  may  differ  on  other  points,  would  doubt- 
less be  found  to  agree  in  regarding  mechanics  as  a  science 
altogether  material,  devotion  to  which  is  especially  unfa- 
vorable to  the  growth  of  faith. 

And  yet  no  view  could  be  more  erroneous.  Our  teach- 
ers, from  causes  which  we  will  not  stop  to  seek  for  now, 
have  here  overlooked  what  was  especially  entitled  to  their 
attention.  They  have  committed  the  common  mistake, 
and  one  of  which  they  would  consider  themselves  above 
all  men  to  be  incapable,  of  looking  only  at  the  outside 
of  things,  of  permitting  the  thought  to  rest  on  that  which 
meets  the  senses.  This  error  of  arresting  the  thought  is 
one  of  degree,  and  in  one  degree  or  another  it  is  more 
general  than  is  commonly  imagined.  It  lies  at  the 
bottom  of  materialism,  and  hides  God  from  the  sight  of 
men. 

Mechanical  science  deals  with  matter,  although,  as  we 
shall  see,  not  primarily ;  but  it  is  not  itself  material.  On 
the  contrary,  it  is  spiritual  in  its  nature  and  in  all  its 
influences.  And  precisely  on  account  of  this  singular 
duality,  because  while  spiritual  in  itself,  it  deals  with 
matter  in  all  its  states  and  forms,  mechanical  science  is 


4  IN  TROD  UCTOR  Y. 

also  singularly  practical,  and  so  is  adapted  to  correct  the 
tendency  to  erroneous  habits  of  thought  and  visionary 
speculations,  of  what  character  soever  these  may  be. 

The  adaptation  of  mechanical  science  to  meet  the  fal- 
lacies of  materialism  is  so  admirable,  that  the  complete 
eradication  of  this  noxious  weed  from  the  fields  of  philo- 
sophic thought  may  be  regarded  as  its  special  office. 

The  effect  of  mechanical  science  on  our  physical  well- 
being,  great  and  beneficent  as  this  is,  shall  be  surpassed  in 
intrinsic  importance  by  its  healthful  influence  on  thought, 
on  belief,  on  morals,  and  generally  on  the  spiritual  nature 
of  man.  Indeed,  this  influence  has  been  widely  felt  al- 
ready, although  hitherto  various  causes  have  combined  to 
prevent  its  distinct  recognition. 

This  influence  of  mechanical  science  is  far-reaching.  It 
is  of  a  nature  to  aid  directly  in  establishing  in  the  mind 
the  solid  foundation  of  faith.  Its  immediate  tendency  is 
to  dispel  the  idea  of  antagonism  between  reason  and  faith, 
to  show  that  antagonism  exists  only  between  reason  and 
credulity,  and  to  vindicate  the  authority  of  faith  over  its 
own  vast  region.  It  shows  that  faith  is  consistent  with 
the  highest  intelligence,  that  all  true  philosophy  leads  up 
to  faith,  and  that  the  larger  and  more  complete  the  com- 
prehension of  truth  becomes,  the  more  absolute  faith 
must  become. 

These  statements,  on  their  bare  presentation,  will  natu- 
rally be  received  with  more  or  less  incredulity  by  most 
educated  persons,  whose  studies  and  habits  of  thought 
have  generally  been  on  lines  far  removed  from  those 
which  they  are  now  asked  to  follow.  In  presenting  them 
the  full  burden  of  proof  is  necessarily  assumed. 

In  the  following  papers  I  have  attempted  to  maintain 
these  propositions,  and  to  show  the  practical  application 
of  mechanical  science  to  this  higher  use.  I  have  endeav- 


INTRODUCTORY.  5 

ored  to  exhibit  the  intimate  connection  that  exists  be- 
tween those  forms  of  truth  which  are  known  as  spiritual 
truth  and  those  forms  of  truth  which  are  embraced  in  the 
term  "  mechanical  truth,"  or  rather  to  show  the  essential 
unity  of  these  varied  modes  of  expression  of  universal 
truth.  I  am,  however,  -deeply  sensible  of  the  contrast 
between  the  greatness  of  the  subject  and  the  necessarily 
limited  character  of  my  treatment  of  it. 


THE  UNSEEN. 


ABOVE  all  other  employments  of  a  secular  character,  the 
study  of  mechanical  science,  using  the  term  in  its  largest 
meaning,  operates  to  familiarize  the  mind  with  the  reality 
and  the  controlling  nature  of  unseen  things. 

In  this  respect  mechanical  science  occupies  a  peculiar 
position.  On  the  one  hand,  it  differs  from  the  other 
physical  sciences,  in  that  these  terminate  in  observations 
on  matter  itself ;  on  the  other  hand,  it  differs  from  pure 
mathematics,  in  that  this  contemplates  abstract  or  ideal 
conditions  only.  When  physical  science  is  extended  to 
the  consideration  of  the  laws  which  govern  the  action  of 
matter,  and  when  mathematics  is  considered  in  its  ma- 
terial applications,  then  the  two  unite,  and  constitute  the 
various  branches  of  mechanical  science. 

This  science  deals,  primarily,  not  with  matter,  but  with 
force, — as  these  are  commonly  distinguished  from  each 
other, — with  the  unseen  and  the  eternal ;  and  in  its  study 
and  its  practice  it  is  with  this  first  spiritual  reality  that 
men  are  brought  into  habitual  association. 

Among  the  things  which  are  earliest  taught  to  the 
student  in  any  branch  of  mechanics  is,  to  put  down  on 
paper  imaginary  points  and  lines,  which  are  called  centres 
and  centre  lines.  These  are  not  seen  in  any  construction, 
but  they  are  the  fundamental  elements  of  every  construc- 
tion. They  are  the  points  in  which  forces  are  properly 

6 


THE    UNSEEN.  7 

conceived  to  be  gathered,  and  the  lines  along  which  forces 
act — in  which  these  are  transmitted  or  resisted.  Mechani- 
cal structures  and  movements  are  primarily  represented  by 
diagrams  consisting  only  of  centres  and  centre  lines,  to 
which,  in  the  case  of  moving  machines  or  bodies,  there  are 
added  lines  of  motion,  which  represent  the  successive 
positions  of  the  centres  or  of  the  bodies  to  which  motion 
is  imparted. 

These  points  and  lines  are  objects  of  purely  mental 
perception.  They  have  no  material  existence.  But  in  the 
mind  of  the  designer  of  any  machine  or  mechanical 
structure  they  must  always  precede  the  idea  of  matter, 
and  determine  the  order  of  its  distribution  or  arrange- 
ment. 

A  familiar  illustration  of  this  requirement  is  afforded  in 
the  eccentric  crank,  by  which  the  valves  of  steam-engines 
are  commonly  actuated.  No  eye  ever  saw  the  centre  of 
an  eccentric,  nor  the  circular  path  in  which  this  centre 
moves.  Both  the  centre  and  its  path  are  hidden  in  the 
solid  interior  of  the  shaft.  But  in  every  diagram  of 
movements  derived  from  an  eccentric,  the  centre  and  its 
path  are  the  essential  things,  the  only  things  pertaining 
to  the  eccentric  itself  which  need  to  be  represented. 

Following  upon  these  purely  ideal  points  and  lirles, 
there  comes  the  study  of  mechanical  laws,  in  obedience  to 
which  force  centres  in  these  points,  and  is  exerted  or  is 
transmitted  along  these  lines. 

These  laws,  as  they  are  termed  for  the  sake  of  brevity, 
are  merely  the  statements  or  expressions  of  the  effects 
which  force  is  observed  invariably  to  produce  upon  mat- 
ter, under  given  conditions.  We  have  conferred  upon  us 
the  ability  to  ascertain  these  laws,  to  determine  their 
existence  as  invariable  modes  of  action.  We  are  thus 
enabled  to  conform  our  own  purposes  to  them,  and  so  to 


8  THE    UNSEEN. 

make  matter,  in  its  various  forms  in  which  force  resides, 
minister  to  our  ends. 

The  investigation  of  these  laws,  or  of  the  observed 
effects  that  are  produced  by  the  action  of  force  upon 
matter,  under  the  endlessly  varied  conditions  which  are 
found  to  exist,  constitutes  the  sciences  of  statics  and 
dynamics,  or  of  the  laws  of  force  at  rest  and  of  force  in 
motion ;  including  the  subdivisions  of  these  sciences 
which  treat  of  the  effects  of  force  at  rest  and  in  motion 
upon  matter  in  its  fluid  and  gaseous  states.1 

The  observation  is  an  obvious  one  respecting  these 
mechanical  laws,  that  they  are  universal.  They  stand 
calm  in  eternal  unchangeableness.  Man  is  free  to  obey  or 
to  disregard  them  at  his  will.  At  the  same  time  perfect 
obedience  to  every  one,  so  far  as  it  may  be  involved  in  his 
particular  work,  is  the  condition  of  his  success,  and  this 
condition  he  cannot  evade  in  any  way  nor  in  the  least 
degree. 

Considering  these  uniformities  in  the  action  or  effects 
of  force  as  laws,  we  may  say,  not  only  that  they  must  be 
obeyed  by  us,  but  that  God  has  imposed  them  equally 
upon  Himself.  Precisely  as  our  work  must  be,  so  we 
find  all  His  works  to  be,  conformable  to  the  requirements 
of  physical  law.  Whether  we  consider  the  sublime 
mechanism  of  the  universe,  or  the  structure  of  the  most 
minute  organism,  or  the  action  of  any  natural  agency,  we 
everywhere  behold  the  perfect  illustration  of  those  prin- 
ciples of  construction  and  operation  which  must  be  illus- 
trated also  in  our  own  work. 

But  the  mind  which  has  received  a  development  in  any 
degree  symmetrical,  in  which  the  spiritual  sense  or  insight 
has  been  cultivated,  or,  rather,  in  which  this  has  not  been 

'The  term  "dynamics"  is  used  here  in  its  limited  and  more  familinr 
sense. 


THE  UNSEEN:  9 

obscured,  cannot  rest  here  upon  the  idea  of  law.  Such 
a  mind  perceives  that  to  do  this  would  be  to  remain 
satisfied  with  an  entirely  superficial  view  of  the  subject. 
It  can  affix  no  intelligible  meaning  to  the  term  "  natural 
law,"  or  "  law  of  nature,"  until  it  has  arrived  at  the  truth, 
that  what  we  for  convenience  express  by  this  phrase  is  in 
reality  nothing  less  than  the  changeless  will  of  God — the 
uniform  mode  of  the  Divine  activity, — and  the  mode  in 
which  we  also  must  act,  unless  either  ignorantly  or  pur- 
posely we  attempt  to  resist  the  will  of  God  in  the  physical 
modes  of  its  expression,  when  our  purposes  must  fail — our 
efforts  come  to  naught.  Matter  obeys  our  will,  unless  we 
require  it  to  disobey  the  Supreme  Will.  To  this  Will, 
therefore,  in  order  that  we  shall  accomplish  any  thing 
whatever  by  the  use  or  employment  of  matter,  our  will 
must  be  perfectly  conformed,  so  far  at  least  as  the  occa- 
sion calls  for  its  exercise. 

The  recognition  of  the  great  truth,  that  the  so-termed 
laws  of  nature  are  modes  of  Divine  activity,  has  been 
hindered  by  the  fact  that  this  truth  does  not  consist  with 
the  false  traditional  conception  of  the  Deity ;  which  has 
represented  Him  as  a  passive  Being,  existing  above 
nature,  and  superior  to  law,  governing  the  world  through 
intermediate  agencies,  which  the  heathen  call  inferior 
divinities,  and  theologians  call  second  causes.  More- 
over, the  idea  of  uniformity  of  action,  in  the  absolute 
sense  in  which  this  is  to  be  observed  in  nature,  has 
been  regarded  as  something  not  conceivable  in  a  Being 
possessing  freedom  of  will,  and  supposed  to  be  influenced 
by  a  special  motive  in  each  particular  case  of  His  dealings 
with  men. 

It  has  been  the  uniform  experience,  that  physical  dis- 
coveries show  our  previous  notions  respecting  the  subject- 
matter  of  such  discoveries  to  have  been  both  mistaken 


IO  THE    UNSEEN. 

and  inadequate.  In  no  other  case  is  this  effect  of  physi- 
cal discovery  exhibited  in  so  striking  a  manner  as  it  is  in 
the  correction  and  enlargement  of  our  conception  of  God, 
which  has  been  compelled  by  the  growth  of  mechanical 
science.  This  conception,  so  far  as  the  present  connec- 
tion calls  for  its  statement,  is  that  of  a  Being  whose  uni- 
versal presence  fills  all  things,  who  is  infinitely  near  to 
every  creature,  in  whom,  as  expressed  in  language  which 
we  intuitively  recognise  to  be  inspired,  "  we  live,  and 
move,  and  have  our  being,"  and  whose  dealings  with  men 
must  be  marked  by  the  same  universal  and  eternal  unifor- 
mity of  motive  and  conduct  which  is  manifested  in  nature. 
The  conception  of  God,  of  which  the  above  is  a  partial 
statement,  underlies  modern  religious  thought,  and  con- 
tributes principally  to  its  healthful  growth. 

Let  it  be  repeated,  that  the  mind  in  its  healthy  devel- 
opment demands  here  something  to  rest  upon  more 
substantial  than  empty  conventional  expressions,  and  it 
cannot  be  satisfied  until  it  has  arrived  at  this  sublime 
truth,  that  the  physical  laws  which  we  must  obey  are 
the  changeless  modes  of  the  Divine  activity. 

Now  here  is  a  wonderful  thing.  Here  is  a  sense  in 
which  God  lifts  us  up  to  Himself,  in  which  we  are  ad- 
mitted to  share  ,His  thoughts,  and  to  give  effect  to  our 
free  wills,  by  harmonizing  them  with  His  will.  In  every 
successful  mechanical  work  there  is  a  unity  of  purpose 
between  ourselves  and  our  Maker.  In  the  production  of 
all  these  we  become  co-workers  with  Him, — yea,  the 
voluntary  agents  by  whom  He  accomplishes  His  purposes. 

When  Kepler  reflected  on  the  laws  of  planetary  motion 
which  he  had  discovered  or  demonstrated,  he  was  over- 
come with  awe,  and  exclaimed :  "  Now,  O  God,  think  I 
Thy  thoughts  after  Thee."  But  certainly  the  same  re- 
flection is  pertinent  in  the  case  of  every  universal  truth 


THE    UNSEEN.  II 

discovered  by,  or,  correctly  speaking,  revealed  to  man. 
That  such  a  reflection  is  not  always  made  is  only  because 
we  are  not  possessed  of  Kepler's  reverent  spirit. 

Here,  then,  at  the  outset  we  find  a  close  and  vital  con- 
nection existing  between  man  and  the  Infinite  Engineer 
of  the  universe,  and  we  discover  one  respect  or  particular 
in  which,  beyond  question,  God  has  created  man  in  His 
own  image. 

We  have,  thus,  in  a  very  general  manner,  considered 
two  subjects — namely,  centres  and  lines  of  force  and  mo- 
tion, and  physical  law ;  but  we  have  not  yet  contem- 
plated any  reality.  We  have  only  observed  modes  of  ac- 
tion. We  are  now  to  be  brought  face  to  face  with  the  first 
reality,  and  we  shall  perceive  it  to  be  entirely  spiritual. 

Within  all  the  forms  of  what  we  call  matter,  the  first 
reality  which  our  spiritual  sense  perceives  is  force.  In 
some  unknown  way  force  acts  upon  matter,  as  the 
medium  of  its  manifestation.  But  what  force  is,  how  it 
acts  upon  matter,  or  manifests  itself  through  matter,  what 
is  the  nature  of  the  connection  between  them,  or  what  is 
the  essential  nature  of  matter  itself,  all  these  are  questions 
to  which  we  can  give  no  answer.  We  only  know  that 
matter,  in  the  various  states  and  forms  in  which  we  are 
acquainted  with  it,  behaves,  under  the  action  of  force,  in 
a  manner  that  is  invariable  under  the  same  conditions. 

Thus  we  are  confronted  with  a  mystery.  The  very  first 
reality,  the  existence  of  which  we  are  compelled  to  ac- 
knowledge, about  which  our  minds  cannot  admit  a  doubt, 
is  something  of  a  nature  not  capable  of  being  perceived 
through  our  physical  organs.  We  are  made  aware  of  its 
existence  only  through  a  spiritual  sense.  We  may  in- 
dulge in  speculations  concerning  the  nature  of  force,  but 
we  can  know  nothing  about  it,  beyond  the  fact  of  its  ex- 
istence, thus  revealed  to  us. 


12  THE    UNSEEN. 

Upon  this  reality  the  attention  of  the  engineer  must 
continually  be  fixed.  He  is  always  in  its  presence,  but 
he  cannot  behold  it.  It  serves  him  faithfully,  but  when 
he  would  question  it  it  is  dumb.  To  the  engineer  force  is 
at  once  the  most  familiar  of  all  things,  and  the  mystery  of 
mysteries.  With  this  omnipresent  energy,  which  eludes 
his  senses,  and  is  seen  only  in  its  effects,  he  has  to  deal 
continually.  Matter  has  significance  for  him  only  as  the 
habitation  of  force.  He  is  accustomed  and  required 
habitually  to  look  within  all  material  forms,  and  to  con- 
sider only  the  forces,  in  their  action  and  counteraction, 
which  either  abide  in  or  are  transmitted  through  these 
material  forms,  in  their  states  of  rest  or  of  motion. 

A  familiar  illustration  of  the  extent  to  which  engineers 
have  become  able  to  dispense  with  matter,  and  yet  to 
secure  the  forces  which  alone  they  require,  is  furnished  in 
the  construction  of  modern  railway  bridges. 

In  these  structures  the  requirement  is,  that  the  heaviest 
trains,  moving  at  the  most  rapid  speeds,  and  thus  transfer- 
ring their  weight  rapidly  from  one  point  of  the  structure 
to  another,  shall  cross  spans  which  often  need  to  be  of 
considerable  length,  and  also  that  such  trains,  coming 
from  opposite  directions,  and  moving  at  these  speeds,  shall 
pass  each  other  upon  these  bridges,  and  that  the  stresses 
and  shocks  thus  produced  shall  be  repeated  incessantly, 
and  yet  the  bridges  shall  remain  entirely  safe 

We  glide  over  them,  and  they  are  so  firm  that  the 
change  in  the  reverberation  from  that  which  is  heard 
when  the  train  is  moving  over  the  solid  ground  is  hardly 
observable,  but  when  we  look  at  the  structures,  we  see 
that,  as  compared  with  bridges  of  former  times,  which 
were  intended  to  bear  only  insignificant  weights,  in  addi- 
tion to  their  own,  they  seem  almost  like  spiders'  webs. 

In  the  construction  of  these  bridges,  every  stress  that 


THE    UNSEEN.  13 

can  come  upon  them  is  exactly  known,  and  is.  met  in  the 
most  advantageous  practicable  direction,  and  with  a  resist- 
ance equal  to  several  times  its  greatest  possible  intensity. 
That  material  is  employed  in  which  the  resisting  force  is 
known  to  be  contained  in  the  highest  degree,  and  this 
material  is  so  disposed  that  not  a  pound  of  it  is  wasted. 
Each  member  of  the  structure  has  its  special  function,  and 
is  designed  and  proportioned  in  such  a  manner,  that  the 
amount  of  resisting  force  residing  in  every  part  of  it  bears 
a  uniform  ratio  to  the  amount  of  stress  that  can  come 
upon  such  part. 

The  history  of  the  growth  of  engineering  skill,  and  of 
the  advance  in  our  knowledge  of  the  action  of  force,  and 
of  the  means  and  methods  of  employing  and  resisting  it, 
which  have  made  such  structures  possible,  is  more  won- 
derful than  the  stories  in  the  Arabian  Nights ;  and  this 
because  we  have  always  to  realize  the  amazing  fact  that 
this  history  is  true,  and  its  truth  constitutes  that  supreme 
element  of  wonderfulness,  which  in  the  tales  of  Oriental 
imagination  is  lacking. 

The  most  comprehensive  definition  of  force  that  men 
have  been  able  to  frame,  and  one  which  seems  inclusive 
of  all  its  observed  effects,  is,  a  cause  producing  or  tending 
to  produce  motion.  Although  this  appears  to  be  the 
utmost  that  we  can  know  about  it,  still  its  effects  have 
been  made  the  subject  of  grand  generalizations. 

It  has  been  established  that  force  is  capable  of  a  great 
variety  of  manifestations.  These  manifestations  of  force 
through  matter  are  known  as  energy.  They  appear  as 
statical  or  potential,  and  as  dynamical  energy,  as  light,  as 
heat,  as  electricity  and  magnetism,  and  as  chemical  and 
vegetable  and  vital  activity,  all  of  which  are  forms  of 
energy.  Energy  has  been  shown  to  be  indestructible,  and 
to  exist  in  a  total  degree  or  amount  that  is  not  capable  of 


14  THE    UNSEEN. 

variation.  No  existing  energy  can  ever  cease  to  manifest 
itself  in  some  way.  It  passes  freely  from  one  form  of 
manifestation  to  another ;  its  disappearance  in  any  one 
form  being  attended  by  its  appearance,  in  precisely  equal 
amount,  in  other  forms. 

Force  is  the  sole  cause  of  physical  phenomena.  All 
rest  of  matter,  and  all  uniform  motion — which  is  rest  in 
its  true  sense  of  undisturbed  condition, — result  from  the 
equilibrium  of  counteracting  forces  ;  while  changes  from  a 
state  of  rest  to  one  of  motion,  or  from  one  degree  of  motion 
to  another,  are  produced  by  disturbances  of  this  equilib- 
rium, and  tend  towards  its  restoration. 

The  beginning  of  the  cultivation  of  mechanics,  in  its 
various  branches,  as  the  science  of  force,  marked  an  era  of 
peculiar  importance  in  the  progress  that  mankind  is 
making  in  civilization.  The  recognition  of  force,  as  a 
spiritual  reality,  manifested  through  the  medium  of  physi- 
cal forms,  which  is  the  characteristic  of  mechanics,  re- 
quired a  certain  degree  of  spiritual  insight,  and  constituted 
the  first  advance  made  by  men  from  that  primitive  per- 
ceptive condition,  in  which  thought  is  limited  to  the 
material  forms  themselves,  as  these  are  disclosed  to  us 
through  our  organs  of  sense. 

Thus  the  recognition  of  force  was  the  first  step  toward 
the  scientific  recognition  of  all  spiritual  realities,  which  are 
manifested  to  us  through  the  same  physical  medium,  and 
of  the  Infinite  Being  in  whom  all  these  consist.  And  be- 
cause it  was  the  first  step  in  this  advance  toward  the 
perception  of  all  spiritual  realities  in  their  unity,  it  was  by 
far  the  most  important  one,  as  upon  it  all  succeeding 
steps  depend.  It  was  also  the  step  which  was  most 
slowly  and  gradually  taken,  and  which  it  was  necessary 
should  be  dwelt  upon  for  a  considerable  time,  in  order  that 


THE    UNSEEN.  15 

the  mind  might  be  prepared  for  those  which  were  to  fol- 
low it,  in  the  natural  progress  of  thought.  Thus  by 
mechanical  science  a  wide  door  has  been  opened  into 
the  realm  of  the  unseen. 

At  present,  scientific  thinkers  generally  are  accustomed 
to  stop  with  the  contemplation  of  force.  In  point  of  fact, 
as  will  be  shown,  force  is  not  to  be  generically  distinguished 
from  the  other  spiritual  realities  of  truth,  beauty,  and  love, 
which  are  equally  manifested  to  us  through  the  same 
universal  medium  of  the  physical  creation,  and  of  whose 
existence  we  are  made  aware  through  a  similar  mode  of 
revelation.  But  from  the  point  of  view  to  which  men  are 
now  by  their  education  generally  confined,  force  appears 
to  be  the  only  spiritual  reality  that  is  manifested  to  us  in 
this  way.  It  is  the  only  one  with  which  we  are  conceived 
to  be  immediately  and  practically  concerned,  and  so  it  is 
to-day  imagined  to  be  scientific  to  limit  the  attention 
altogether  to  force. 

This  marks  the  stage  of  mental  or  spiritual  growth  at 
which  mankind  have  arrived.  In  this  stage  scientific 
thought  is  quite  occupied  with  this  first  unseen  reality,  to 
the  contemplation  of  which,  in  its  grander  features,  men 
are  only  beginning  to  be  accustomed,  and  which  must  be 
relied  upon  by  us  in  all  the  activity  of  our  lives.  In  re- 
ality, our  connection  with  force,  and  our  dependence  upon 
it,  are  not  any  more  close  or  -more  absolute  than  are  our 
connection  with,  and  our  dependence  upon,  all  other 
spiritual  realities  ;  but  our  relations  to  it  have  hitherto 
seemed  more  palpable  than  those  relations  do  which 
require  for  their  discernment  a  still  more  spiritual  vision. 

Generalizing  from  the  observed  uniformity  of  the  action 
of  force,  men  have  formulated  the  expression,  "  natural 
law."  In  returning  to  this  subject,  the  object  is  to  call 
attention  more  pointedly  to  the  disposition,  now  com- 


1 6  THE    UNSEEN. 

monly  to  be  observed,  not  merely  to  rest  upon  this  mere 
phrase,  but  to  give  to  this  phrase  in  some  sort  an  objec- 
tive character,  to  regard  it  as  if  it  expressed  some  sub- 
stantive reality ;  when  in  fact  it  expresses  and  can 
express  nothing  except  the  uniform  mode  of  action  of 
a  Being. 

This  disposition  presents  an  instructive  phenomenon. 
Scientific  minds  are  sometimes  said  to  be  destitute  of  im- 
agination, but  it  will  be  difficult  to  find  another  work  of 
the  human  imagination  that  is  worthy  to  be  ranked  with 
this  creation.  The  worship  of  law  is  scientific  idolatry; 
or,  the  adoration  of  an  image  created  by  men  themselves, 
to  satisfy  an  instinctive  want. 

We  begin  here  to  observe  the  relation  that  the  physical 
creation  bears  to  the  human  race  as  its  educator.  Its 
office  as  our  teacher  respecting  all  material  forms  of  be- 
ing, and  also  in  the  development  of  our  senses,  and  of  all 
our  physical  and  mental  powers  and  activities,  which  are 
employed  in  the  acquisition  of  the  knowledge  of  these 
forms  of  being,  and  in  the  utilization  of  them  which  we 
have  evidently  been  intended  to  make, — all  this  is  of  course 
obvious.  But  beyond  this,  we  already  perceive  that  it  is 
from  the  manifestations  of  it  in  the  physical  creation  that 
we  obtain  our  knowledge  of  force,  and  receive  the  pro- 
digious increase  in  our  spiritual  development  that  this 
knowledge  brings  to  us.  This  may  be  termed  "  the  min- 
istry of  force."  As  we  advance  in  this  discussion,  higher 
and  higher  exhibitions  will  appear  of  the  educational 
work  which  the  universe  by  which  we  are  surrounded  has 
been  adapted  to  perform.  These  educational  influences 
we  shall  find  to  be  addressed  to,  and  to  employ  and 
develop,  every  mode  of  our  spiritual  activity. 

An  important  lesson  may  here  be  noted.  The  argu- 
ment from  analogy  rests  upon  the  unity  between  spiritual 


THE    UNSEEN.  \J 

and  physical  being,  as  proceeding  from  a  common  source. 
Upon  the  assumption  of  the  existence  of  this  unity,  and 
upon  the  evident  fact  that  spirit  is  a  higher  order  of  being 
than  matter,  the  physical  creation  affords  strong  presump- 
tive evidence  of  the  immortality  of  the  soul. 

A  remarkable  identity  is  observed  between  matter  and 
force  in  this,  that  the  former  is,  like  the  latter,  indestructi- 
ble. While  subject,  like  force,  to  endless  changes  of  state 
and  form,  no  particle  of  matter  can  cease  to  exist.  This 
is  established  by  universal  and  familiar  proofs.  Then, 
a  fortiori,  the  soul  of  man,  though  likewise  changing  its 
state,  cannot  cease  to  exist. 

While  to  uninstructed  minds  the  constantly  present 
phenomena  of  the  decay  and  disappearance  of  matter  sug- 
gest by  association  the  idea  that  our  conscious  being  may 
cease  in  like  manner,  it  is  deeply  interesting  to  observe 
that,  on  the  very  first  step  towards  a  knowledge  of  physi- 
cal truth,  this  suggestion  vanishes,  and  the  true  analogies 
of  immortality  appear  in  its  place. 

Thus  from  a  consideration  of  the  known  harmonies  of 
the  creation  the  conclusion  is  compelled,  that  the  idea  of 
the  cessation  of  our  being  in  annihilation,  that  idea  which 
fills  us  with  distress,  from  which  we  instinctively  recoil,  is, 
like  a  mistaken  mechanical  conception,  only  a  figment  of 
the  brain,  which  represents  no  reality,  a  shade  that  van- 
ishes at  the  first  dawn  of  light ;  and  that  the  opposite  idea 
of  our  immortality,  the  idea  to  which  we  instinctively 
cling,  which  fills  the  healthy  soul  with  gladness,  which  is 
the  balm  for  all  wounds,  and  in  which  is  found  the  solu- 
tion of  all  mysteries  that  would  otherwise  darken  our 
earthly  being,  is  true.  It  cannot  be  that  the  conscious 
spirit  perishes,  and  matter  and  force  endure. 


THE  CRITERION  OF  TRUTH. 


IN  the  preceding  paper,  I  have  attempted  to  give  a  brief 
exposition  of  the  nature  of  mechanical  science.  We  are 
next  led  to  consider,  in  the  same  general  manner,  the 
character  of  the  influence  which  this  science  is  adapted 
to  exert. 

It  will  be  found,  on  making  proper  inquiry,  that 
mechanical  science  constitutes  the  most  important  aux- 
iliary to  verbal  revelation,  in  disclosing  to  mankind  the 
real  criterion  of  truth.  In  this  work,  two  things  are  neces- 
sary. Not  only  must  the  criterion  of  truth  be  shown  to 
men,  but  in  addition  to  this  the  minds  of  men  must  be 
prepared  to  admit  it.  Men  must  be  educated  to  recog- 
nize, to  accept,  and  to  appeal  to  this  criterion,  as  the  sole 
and  infallible  test  of  all  truth  whatever. 

For  the  attainment  of  this  result,  much  more,  indeed, 
is  required  than  mere  education,  as  this  term  is  commonly 
understood.  A  radical  change,  the  character  of  which 
will  be  indicated  presently,  needs  to  be  effected  in  the 
tendency  and  disposition  of  our  nature.  This  change  re- 
quires for  its  accomplishment  a  strong  agency,  operating 
through  a  long  period  of  time,  and  producing  its  effects  in 
an  almost  imperceptible  manner.  Mechanical  science  is 
such  an  agency.  This  change  in  the  character  and  direc- 
tion of  thought  is,  in  an  eminent  degree,  the  work  of  the 
science  of  force. 

18 


THE    CRITERION  OF  TRUTH.  19 

The  problem  of  the  ages  has  been  this  :  How  is  truth  to 
be  distinguished  from  error  ?  What  test  shall  be  applied 
to  the  notions  that  men  form  in  their  minds,  in  order  to 
determine  whether  or  not  there  exist  any  realities  to  which 
these  notions  correspond?  How  is  it  to  be  determined 
what  we  shall,  and  what  we  shall  not  believe? 

With  respect  to  all  beliefs,  to  those  of  a  physical  and 
those  of  a  spiritual  nature  alike,  if  we  except  the  geometry 
and  mechanics  that  were  known  to  them,  and  the  influ- 
ence of  which  we  have  reason  to  believe  was  very  limited, 
the  ancient  heathen  world  knew  of  no  criterion  except 
human  authority.  The  same  is  true  of  modern  heathen 
races.  We  limit  .our  view  to  the  most  intellectual  of  all. 
In  the  teachings  of  the  great  minds  of  the  Grecian  race, 
there  is  presented  a  curious  medley  of  inspired  truths, 
mistaken  conceptions  and  frivolous  absurdities,  all  which 
were  received  by  the  disciples  of  the  philosopher  with 
the  same  implicit  belief,  on  his  authority  alone.  Ipse 
dixit  was  the  only  proposition  that  needed  to  be  proved. 

Under  the  conditions  of  heathen  society,  this  reliance 
on  human  authority  was  a  logical  necessity.  No  inquiry 
had  been  instituted  respecting  the  source  of  truth. 
Human  thought  had  not  ventured  so  far  as  this.  The 
human  mind  was  the  only  source  of  beliefs.  These  were 
wholly  derived  from  human  teaching.  So  it  will  be  per- 
ceived that  human  authority  afforded  the  only  criterion 
of  their  correctness.  The  mind  must  always  be  satisfied 
by  an  appeal  to  the  source  of  its  belief.  Beyond  this 
there  can  be  no  appeal. 

Any  departure  from  this  established  usage  involved  a 
radical  change  in  the  mode  and  direction  of  thought. 
Such  a  change  must  be  effected  by  some  means,  as  the 
essential  prerequisite  to  a  true  civilization. 

This  change  is  from  that  habit  of  thought  in  which  the 


20  THE   CRITERION  OF  TRUTH. 

mind  is  satisfied  by  an  appeal  to  the  source  of  its  belief, 
whatever,  as  the  result  of  previous  influences,  that  source 
may  happen  to  be,  to  that  contrary  habit  of  thought,  in 
which  the  mind  seeks  for  and  recognizes  the  single  source 
of  truth,  which  then  becomes  the  only  source  of  its  belief, 
and  to  which,  in  all  cases,  its  appeal  is  directly  made.  We 
shall  see  that  the  source  of  truth,  thus  either  consciously 
or  unconsciously  recognized,  can  be  nothing  less  than  the 
Infinite  Being. 

This  change  in  the  habit  or  direction  of  thought  is  still 
far  from  being  accomplished.  It  is  resisted  by  subtle 
and  powerful  influences.  It  advances  so  slowly  that  it 
seems  sometimes  to  retrograde.  On  the  whole,  its  prog- 
ress has  been  so  partial  that,  when  one  contemplates  the 
extent  of  that  which  is  yet  to  be  made,  it  seems  to  be 
only  just  begun. 

The  various  influences  which  oppose  this  transition  from 
the  one  to  the  other  of  these  modes  of  thought  all  have 
their  root  in  a  common  weakness  of  our  nature,  which 
manifests  itself  in  two  apparently  opposite  ways.  These 
are  a  disposition  to  assume,  and  a  disposition  to  submit 
to,  human  authority  in  matters  of  belief.  These  are  essen- 
tially the  same  disposition,  the  direction  of  its  exhibition 
being  determined  by  accidental  conditions.  Whichever 
of  these  forms  this  disposition  may  take,  it  shows  its 
identity  by  appearing  continually  in  both  forms  and  in 
equal  degree  in  the  same  individual.  The  severity  with 
which  submission  is  exacted  from  inferiors  always  cor- 
responds precisely  with  the  servility  with  which  it  is  ren- 
dered to  superiors. 

However  this  weakness  may  manifest  itself  in  any 
individual,  or  in  any  organization,  whether  in  the  dis- 
position to  assume  authority  over  belief,  or  in  the  disposi- 
tion to  submit  to  such  authority,  in  either  case  alike  it 


THE    CRITERION  OF  TRUTH.  21 

involves  an  inability  to  perceive  that,  since  the  human 
mind  cannot  be  the  source  of  any  truth,  so  it  cannot  be 
the  legitimate  authority  for  any  belief. 

When,  however,  this  fundamental  truth  has  been  appre- 
hended, then  it  at  once  becomes  evident  that  in  matters  of 
belief  all  men  stand  on  an  equality,  and  have,  in  this  re- 
spect of  authority  and  submission,  no  relations  towards 
one  another,  but  the  relations  of  each  individual  are 
immediately  and  directly  with  the  source  of  truth.  It 
also  becomes  evident  that  in  this  respect  no  distinction  is 
to  be  drawn  between  physical  and  spiritual  truth.  The 
relations  of  the  individual  to  the  Infinite  source  of  all 
truth  are  just  as  direct,  and  the  absence  of  all  relations 
towards  his  fellow-men  is  just  as  complete,  in  the  case  of 
spiritual  truth  as  they  obviously  are  in  the  case  of  physi- 
cal truth. 

The  clear  perception  of  the  immediate  and  exclusive 
relation  of  each  individual  to  the  source  of  truth  renders 
it  impossible  for  men  either  to  assume  or  to  submit  to 
authority  in  any  matters  of  belief,  for  it  is  then  obvious 
that  all  assumption  by  man  of  authority  over  either  the 
physical  or  the  spiritual  belief  of  his  fellow-men  is  absurd, 
and  the  exercise  of  such  authority  is  a  usurpation. 

This  fundamental  change  in  the  mode  and  habit  of 
thought  has  been,  and  still  is,  and  must  continue  to  be 
until  such  change  has  been  completely  made,  dependent 
for  its  accomplishment  very  largely  on  the  influence  of 
mechanical  science. 

The  peculiar  adaptation  of  mechanics  to  the  task  of 
delivering  the  mind  from  bondage  to  human  authority, 
and  of  making  the  assumption  of  such  authority  ridicu- 
lous in  the  sight  of  all  men,  becomes  manifest  when  we 
consider  the  nature  of  its  methods.  These  methods  are 
simply  experiment  and  observation.  In  common  with  all 


22  THE   CRITERION  OF  TRUTH. 

true  science,  mechanical  science  has  this  characteristic, 
that  its  conclusions  are  derived  from  and  are  brought 

o 

directly  to  the  tests  of  experiment  and  observation,  and 
are  open  to  free  criticism. 

Repeated  experiment  and  observation  constitute  the 
only  mode  in  which  the  teachings  of  mechanical  science 
can  be  either  established  or  assailed.  The  names  of  emi- 
nent discoverers  or  inventors  are  held  in  peculiar  honor, 
it  is  true,  but  this  is  only  because  the  truth  and  the  value 
of  their  discoveries  and  inventions  have  been  confirmed 
by  every  fresh  investigation  or  application  of  them.  For 
this  reason  alone  these  have  secured  the  acceptance,  and 
the  minds  through  which  they  have  been  revealed  have 
received  the  homage,  of  mankind. 

All  experiments  in  mechanical  science  have  for  their 
object  to  determine  the  action  of  force  under  given  con- 
ditions, or,  the  behavior  of  some  form  of  matter  under 
the  action  of  force.  The  essential  nature  of  these  acts  of 
experiment  and  observation  seems  hardly  to  have  been 
realized.  It  is  of  the  first  importance  that  their  real  char- 
acter should  be  clearly  apprehended. 

They  are,  in  reality,  nothing  less  than  appeals  made  in 
the  only  possible  way,  and  in  the  way  obviously  appointed, 
directly  to  the  source  of  truth,  to  the  Divine  Being,  who 
through  this  method  reveals  to  man  the  changeless  modes 
of  His  own  beneficent  activity,  and  also  the  modes  in 
which  man  may  cooperate  with  this  activity.1  Through 
ways  of  human  devising  the  ancient  augurs  vainly  pre- 
tended to  inquire  the  will  of  imaginary  divinities  respecting 
particular  human  affairs.  Now,  employing  in  all  sincerity 
the  methods  of  divine  provision,  man  seeks  to  learn  the 

1  They  who  cannot  see  experiment  and  observation  to  be  such  appeals  to 
the  Deity  will,  nevertheless,  agree  in  regarding  them  as  appeals  made 
directly  to  nature  herself.  But  this  is  an  expression  of  which  the  only  intel- 
ligible meaning  is  the  one  given  in  the  text. 


THE   CRITERION  OF  TRUTH.  23 

will  of  God,  in  its  uniform  physical  operation,,  and  how  he 
may  direct  his  own  will  in  conformity  with.  it.  The 
knowledge  gained  by  these  methods  constitutes  mechani- 
cal science.  In  the  light  of  the  present  day,  it  is  clearly 
seen  that  the  intrusion  of  human  authority  here  would  be 
a  profanation. 

But  this  has  not  been  the  case  very  long.  This  is  a 
mental  illumination,  at  which  the  civilized  portion  of  the 
human  race  has  only  quite  recently  arrived.  Until 
mechanical  science  had  its  birth,  only  two  or  three  centu- 
ries ago,  human  authority  continued  to  be  the  sole  arbiter 
in  all  matters  of  physical  belief.  No  other  criterion  of 
physical  truth  had  been  so  much  as  imagined.  From  all 
antiquity  submission  to  human  authority  in  matters  of 
physical  belief  had  been  the  unquestioned  habit  of  the 
unlearned  and  the  learned  alike. 

The  consequences  of  this  error  have  been  far  reaching. 
In  contemplating  them,  we  first  observe  the  intimate  na- 
ture of  the  connection  that  exists  between  physical  and 
spiritual  truth,  a  connect  ion  more  intimate  than  any  mind 
is  probably  able  to  conceive.  In  the  darkness  of  the 
middle  ages,  the  same  deep  obscurity  rested  upon  both. 
While  the  real  source  of  physical  truth  remained  undis- 
closed, the  growing  tendency  of  human  thought  was  to 
hide  also  the  real  source  of  spiritual  truth.  While  sub- 
mission to  human  authority  was  universal  with  respect  to 
physical  belief,  it  was  not  possible  that  the  contrary 
teaching  of  the  Bible  respecting  spiritual  belief  could  be 
comprehended.  Opposite  habits  of  thought  respecting 
these  two  classes  of  truth  could  not  coexist.  In  this  fact, 
in  which  once  lay  the  despair,  now  lies  the  hope,  of  the 
world. 

The  habit  of  servile  acceptance  of  the  dictates  of  recog- 
nized human  authority  inevitably  extended  from  physical 


24  THE    CRITERION-   OF   TRUTH. 

to  spiritual  belief.  In  this  habit  is  found  the  funda- 
mental reason,  why  the  teachings  of  the  Christ  came, 
through  century  after  century,  to  be  more  and  more 
buried  under  human  traditions  and  requirements,  why  the 
ultimate  appeal  came  more  and  more  to  be  made  to 
human  authorities,  on  all  questions  both  of  faith  and  of 
conduct,  and  why  at  last  the  Christian  Church  came  to 
repeat  the  phenomenon  of  Judaism  in  the  Messianic  age, 
and  to  present  the  almost  complete  extinguishment  of 
Divine  truth  in  human  defilement  ;  as  human  authority 
became  more  outrageous  in  its  exactions,  and  submission 
to  it  became  more  degraded  in  its  servility. 

Obtaining  the  position  of  general  spiritual  supremacy  in 
Western  Europe,  and  maintaining  this  position  for  many 
centuries,  under  these  conditions  of  thought  respecting 
physical  belief,  and  when  the  source  of  physical  truth  was 
utterly  unrecognized,  it  was  unavoidable  that  the  Church 
of  Rome  should  come  to  hide,  also,  the  real  source  of 
spiritual  truth,  and  should  limit  appeal  to  human  au- 
thority in  matters  of  spiritual  belief.  Thus  this  amazing 
development  of  human  authority  over  the  consciences 
of  men  followed  as  the  necessary  consequence  of  the 
universal  error  of  submission  to  human  authority  in 
respect  to  physical  belief. 

It  is  true  respecting  most  great  movements  that  their 
origin  is  obscure.  Fundamental  causes  must  be  in  opera- 
tion for  a  long  time  before  their  effects  begin  to  appear 
with  distinctness.  Mechanical  science  is  probably  to  be 
regarded  as  one  fruit  of  the  Reformation,  yet  Galileo 
owned  allegiance  to  the  Church  of  Rome.  History  af- 
fords few  sights  more  affecting  than  that  of  the  spirit  of 
free  inquiry,  embodied  in  Galileo,  in  the  grasp  of  that 
power,  the  fundamental  principle  of  which  was,  and  is, 
unquestioning  submission  in  every  thing  to  constituted 


THE    CRITERION  OF  TRUTH.  2$ 

human  authority.  The  spiritual  awakening  from  this 
degradation  was  abrupt,  and  brought  conflict  and  deso- 
lation in  its  train,  and  was  followed  by  a  strong  and  thus 
far  a  permanent  reaction.  The  mechanical  awakening 
was  gradual,  but  has  been  steady  and  full  of  benefactions. 

The  vital  question  common  to  both  was,  whether  hu- 
man or  Divine  authority  should  receive  the  submission  of 
the  human  mind.  A  century  after  Luther  and  Zwingli, 
the  issue  was  at  last  distinctly  joined  between  the  dictum 
of  Aristotle  and  the  demonstration  of  Galileo,  on  the 
physical  question,  whether  the  velocity  of  a  falling  body 
did  or  did  not  vary  according  to  the  weight  of  the  body. 
When  this  issue  had  been  decided,  submission  to  human 
authority  respecting  physical  truth  was  at  an  end.  By 
the  same  event,  also,  the  enormous  and  hoary  structure 
of  spiritual  pretension  was  undermined,  and  the  work  of 
emancipation  from  all  forms  of  human  authority  was  really 
begun.  Such  is  the  unity  that  connects  physical  and 
spiritual  truth. 

The  decision  of  this  issue  between  human  authority 
and  the  appeal  by  experiment  marks  the  beginning  of  the 
great  transition  in  the  mode  and  direction  of  thought,  so 
far  as  relates  immediately  to  physical  belief.  It  was  more 
than  an  event.  It  was  a  prophecy.  It  foretold  the  time 
when  thought  shall  be  free,  when  human  authority  shall 
be  driven  out  of  the  temple  of  spiritual  truth,  as  well  as 
out  of  the  temple  of  physical  truth  ;  when,  universally  and 
forever,  for  the  knowledge  of  all  truth,  whether  in  its 
physical  or  its  spiritual  forms,  man,  in  his  individual  free- 
dom, shall  appeal  to  God  alone. 

Even  yet,  however,  such  is  the  influence  of  conven- 
tional modes  of  education,  men  are  not  ready  to  recognize 
the  unity  of  all  truth,  nor  the  common  source  of  all  well- 
founded  belief.  Immature  science  and  theology  slowly 


26  THE    CRITERION  OF  TRUTH. 

emerging  from  gross  mediaeval  conceptions,  mutually  act- 
ing and  reacting  upon  each  other,  have  united  to  form  the 
thought  of  the  present  age.  On  the  one  hand,  students 
of  science,  confining  their  view  to  incomplete  data,  are 
unable,  in  what  is  termed  matter,  to  see  the  principal 
thing,  to  behold  the  revelation  of  God.  On  the  other 
hand,  theologians  fail  to  recognize  the  equal  sacredness 
of  all  truth,  as  truth,  whatever  its  form  may  be,  and  so 
they  too  are  unable,  in  any  proper  sense,  to  behold  in 
all  physical  being  the  Infinite  and  Universal  Presence. 
Both  have  apparently  yet  to  learn,  or  at  least  to  realize, 
the  great  fact,  that  religion  and  philosophy  are  manifesta- 
tions of  the  same  truth,  expressions  of  the  nature  of  the 
same  Being,  between  whom  and  each  individual  the  rela- 
tion and  connection  are  immediate  and  direct. 

Meanwhile  the  insidious  disposition  to  assert  and  to 
submit  to  human  authority  is  still  seen,  and  its  despotism 
is  felt,  in  a  greater  or  lesser  degree,  in  all  human  systems  of 
thought,  and  especially  in  religious  systems.  Its  presence 
in  the  latter  reveals  the  admixture  of  the  human  element, 
and  pretty  accurately  indicates  its  proportion. 

It  may  be  well  to  dwell  somewhat  longer  upon  the 
methods  of  scientific  inquiry.  The  more  familiar  the  mind 
becomes  with  these  methods,  the  better  prepared  it  will 
be  to  give  proper  consideration  to  the  views  which  have 
already  been  presented,  and  especially  to  those  which  are 
to  follow. 

Before  proceeding  further,  however,  attention  should  be 
drawn  to  the  distinction  which  exists  between  the  real 
nature  of  scientific  methods,  as  this  has  been  exhibited, 
and  the  grand  consequences  that  have  followed  from  the 
adoption  of  these  methods,  and  that  must  still  more 
largely  attend  their  employment  in  the  future,  on  the  one 


THE    CRITERION  OF  TRUTH.  2J 

hand,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  the  frequently  limited 
purposes,  and  even  the  contrary  disposition,  of  individual 
inquirers.  These  often  fail  to  recognize,  they  even  deny, 
the  existence  of  the  God  to  whom,  in  fact,  they  continually 
appeal.  This  distinction  is  an  obvious  one,  and  cannot 
fail  to  be  observed  by  the  candid  reader. 

All  true  science  must  be  destitute  of  the  reverential 
spirit,  in  the  sense  in  which  this  term  is  commonly  used. 
If  a  belief  is  venerable,  that  fact  tends  to  raise  the  pre- 
sumption that  it  is  unfounded,  since  the  beliefs  of  more 
ignorant  ages  have  generally  been  found  to  be  so.  The 
authority  of  Scripture  is  excluded,  and  this  with  evident 
propriety ;  for  the  subject  of  inquiry  is  some  form  of 
physical  truth,  and,  on  any  statement  contained  in  the 
Scriptures  that  comes  fairly  within  the  scope  of  physical 
inquiry,  their  claim  to  be  the  Word  of  God  is  itself  on 
trial.  Before  this  test  of  agreement  with  the  facts  in 
nature,  every  religious  system  of  human  origin  has  gone 
down,  and  must  inevitably  do  so,  since  these  systems  are 
sure  to  teach,  as  essential  portions  of  their  creeds,  some 
things  that  are  proven  by  science  to  be  false. 

Science  is  not  less  destructive  of  human  creations  in  her 
ministers  than  in  her  methods.  Here  is  no  priesthood, 
nor  ordination,  nor  privilege,  but  a  pure  democracy,  where 
the  right  of  private  judgment  is  exercised  without  re- 
straint, and  admission  to  the  mysteries  is  open  to  all  on 
the  same  conditions. 

The  observations  and  experiments  by  which  knowledge 
is  advanced  are  repeated  by  independent  inquirers,  under 
varied  conditions  and  by  all  known  methods,  before  the 
results  can  be  accepted  as  established  facts.  In  this  way, 
from  age  to  age,  experimental  science  in  all  its  branches 
makes  its  slow  but  certain  progress.  The  discoveries  of 
one  generation  become  the  familiar  truths  of  the  next, 


28  THE   CRITERION  OF   TRUTH. 

are  taught  to  children,  and  turned  to  account  in  the 
arts  and  industries ;  and  so  are  continually  adding  to  the 
occupations,  to  the  comforts,  and  to  the  intelligence  of 
mankind. 

The  discoveries  and  inventions,  or,  properly  speaking, 
the  revelations,  which  together  constitute  mechanical 
science,  may  be  grouped  under  four  general  heads.  These 
are  : 

ist. — The  laws  of  force  and  of  motion  ; 
2d. — The  operation  of  these  laws,  in  their  application  to 

matter  in  its  various  forms  and  states  ; 
3d. — The  forms  and  properties  of  matter  itself  ;  and 
4th. — The  conception  of  the  modes  in  which  all  these,  in 

the  infinite  variety  of  their  combinations,  are  found 

to  be  practically  applied  in  nature,  and  in  which  they 

can  be  practically  applied  by  man. 

The  weight  or  pressure  of  the  atmosphere,  or  the 
mutual  attraction  of  the  earth  and  the  atmosphere  for 
each  other,  and  the  amount  or  degree  of  this  attraction, 
constitute  a  phenomenon  that  belongs  to  the  second  of 
these  groups.  The  discovery  of  this  attraction  was  one 
of  the  earliest  discoveries  in  modern  mechanical  science. 
A  brief  account  of  it  will  fitly  illustrate  the  method 
in  which  the  facts  of  this  science  have  been  established  ; 
or  the  form  and  mode  of  the  appeal  that,  in  all  experi- 
ments of  a  mechanical  nature,  whether  these  are  successful 
or  unsuccessful,  is  made  to  the  Infinite  Source  of  truth ; 
and  the  manner  in  which  the  revelation  of  physical  truth 
is  given,  in  answer  to  such  appeal. 

So  far  as  we  have  any  knowledge,  the  idea  that  the 
atmosphere  might  have  weight  or  exert  a  pressure  never 
occurred  to  the  philosophers  of  antiquity.  During  the 
earlier  period  of  the  revival  of  learning  in  Europe,  the 
question  was  occasionally  discussed,  and  was  always  de- 


THE    CRITERION  OF  TRUTH,  2g 

cided  in  the  negative.  No  such  pressure  could  be  felt. 
All  experience  and  sensation  seemed  to  be  opposed  to  the 
idea  of  its  existence. 

Men  were  everywhere  using  their  rude  devices  for  rais- 
ing water  in  pumps,  without  the  least  idea  of  what  they 
were  doing.  The  action  that  was  taking  place  before 
their  eyes  never  entered  into  their  comprehension.  If 
any  one  had  told  them  that,  in  raising  a  pump  bucket, 
they  were  lifting  a  portion  of  the  weight  of  the  atmos- 
phere from  the  water  under  the  bucket,  so  that  the  excess 
of  this  pressure,  exerted  on  the  surface  of  the  water 
in  the  well,  would  force  the  column  of  water  in  the 
pump  barrel  up  after  the  bucket,  there  were  centuries 
when  such  a  teacher  would  have  been  in  danger  of  being 
burned  up. 

This,  with  all  similar  phenomena,  was  explained  by  the 
dictum,  that  nature  abhors  a  vacuum.  This  nonsense 
passed  for  science  through  many  an  age.  It  is  interesting 
to  recall  the  long  period  during  which  this  was  assumed 
as  an  axiom  that  no  one  dared  to  question.  But  are  there 
not  now  conventional  absurdities,  from  which  we  must 
ourselves  become  free  before  we  can  be  entitled  to  smile 
at  that  one  ?  And  are  we  not  ourselves  surrounded  by 
truths,  which  in  reality  are  as  manifest  as  that  of  the 
weight  of  the  atmosphere,  and  which  are  of  unspeakably 
greater  consequence  than  that,  but  which  our  eyes  have 
not  yet  been  opened  to  see? 

The  raising  of  the  question,  whether  the  atmosphere 
might  have  weight,  was  itself  a  notable  event,  as  marking 
the  beginning  of  scientific  inquiry.  But  an  experiment 
was  tried,  which  was  long  regarded  among  the  learned  as 
settling  this  question  in  the  negative.  This  experiment 
consisted  in  weighing  a  bladder,  when  distended  with  air, 
and  when  empty.  No  difference  in  the  weight  could  ever 
be  detected. 


30  THE    CRITERION  OF  TRUTH. 

The  power  of  observation,  which  was  to  be  developed 
only  by  the  study  of  nature,  did  not  then  exist,  that  would 
enable  men  to  detect  the  fallacy  in  this  experiment.  This 
fallacy  lay  in  the  unobserved  fact,  that  the  bladder  was 
filled  with  and  immersed  in  the  same  fluid.  Whether  full 
or  approximately  empty,  it  always  displaced,  in  addition 
to  its  own  proper  bulk,  very  nearly  the  same  weight  of  air 
that  it  contained.  A  similar  experiment  would  just  as 
well  prove  water,  or  even  mercury,  to  be  without  weight. 
So  this  great  fact  was  yet  hidden  from  men.  Copernicus, 
Galileo,  died  without  the  sight. 

In  endeavoring  to  raise  water  from  a  deep  well  in  Flor- 
ence, it  was  found  possible  to  lift  it  only  about  thirty-two 
feet,  which  led  Galileo  to  observe  that  nature,  evidently, 
did  not  abhor  a  vacuum  above  thirty-two  feet.  Dying, 
Galileo  commended  the  investigation  of  this  subject  to  his 
pupil  and  successor,  Torricelli.  The  reflections  of  Torri- 
celli  led  him  to  the  conviction  that  the  atmosphere  must 
have  weight,  and  that  it  must  be  by  its  pressure  that  the 
water  was  caused  to  rise  in  the  pump  barrel.  In  consid- 
ering how  this  question  might  be  tested,  he  at  last  thought 
of  mercury.  This  substance,  being  between  thirteen  and 
fourteen  times  heavier  than  water,  would  be  caused  by 
the  same  pressure,  if  it  existed,  to  rise  only  about  thirty 
inches.  So  he  reasoned  that,  by  the  employment  of 
mercury,  the  existence  or  non-existence  of  this  pressure 
might  be  shown  in  a  glass  tube. 

It  is  interesting  to  imagine  the  feelings  of  this  philoso- 
pher when  preparing  for  this  experiment,  which  was  so 
remarkable  at  once  for  its  simplicity,  its  conclusiveness, 
and  its  importance.  It  was  almost  as  simple  as  that  of 
standing  the  egg  on  its  end,  yet  no  other  finite  mind  had 
conceived  it.  Was  it  with  trembling  expectation,  or  in 
the  calmness  of  conscious  strength,  that  he  filled  with 


THE   CRITERION  OF  TRUTH.  31 

mercury  his  glass  tube,  four  feet  in  length,  sealed  at  one 
end,  placed  his  finger  over  the  open  end,  inverted  the  tube, 
plunged  the  open  end  in  a  vessel  half  filled  with  mercury, 
and  then — removed  his  finger? 

What  were  the  emotions  with  which  he  saw  the  column 
of  mercury  fall,  and,  after  completing  the  oscillations  pro- 
duced by  its  momentum,  stand  at  a  height  of  between 
twenty-nine  and  thirty  inches,  in  equilibrium  with  the 
pressure  of  the  atmosphere  on  the  same  area  of  surface  of 
the  mercury  in  the  vessel ;  or  with  which  he  realized  the 
fact  that  the  glass  tube  above  the  column  of  mercury 
enclosed  the  absolute  void,  then  first  obtained  by  man, 
since  only  approximations  to  it  could  be  reached  in  the 
pump  barrel,  and  which  was  ever  after  to  be  known  as  the 
Torricellian  Vacuum  !  And  what  would  his  emotions  have 
been,  if  he  could  have  imagined,  what,  indeed,  no  one  can 
adequately  conceive,  the  influence  that  this  discovery  was 
to  exert,  in  promoting  the  industries  and  the  civilization 
of  his  race  ! l 

The  discovery  of  the  pressure  of  the  atmosphere  is  one 
of  those  discoveries  by  which  the  boundary  of  human 
knowledge  has  been  enlarged  in  a  remarkable  degree.  It 
was  a  radical  discovery,  and  out  of  it  there  have  sprung 
an  endless  series  of  discoveries  and  inventions,  which, 
while  they  have  contributed  in  an  incalculable  measure  to 
the  material  welfare  of  man,  have  at  the  same  time  added 
still  further  to  the  extent  of  his  knowledge  and  the  power 
of  his  understanding. 

The  supreme  influence  which  mechanical  science  is 
adapted  to  exert,  and  which  it  is  exerting,  on  thought 

1  Belief  in  nature's  horror  of  a  vacuum  died  hard,  however.  The  account 
of  the  repetition  of  Torricelli's  experiment  by  Pascal,  and  his  correspondence 
on  this  subject  with  Jesuit  Fathers,  in  the  4th  volume  of  his  works,  Paris 
ed.,  1819,  is  delightful  reading. 


32  THE   CRITERION  OF  TRUTH. 

and  belief,  as  well  as  on  human  character,  will  form  the 
primary  subject  of  these  papers.  If  we  seek  for  the  ulti- 
mate ground  of  this  influence,  we  shall  find  this  ground  in 
the  facts,  now  assumed,  but  which  I  shall  endeavor  in  the 
proper  place  to  establish,  that  in  this  science  man,  in  his 
conscious  ignorance,  and  with  a  sense  of  entire  depend- 
ence, makes  his  appeal  immediately  to  the  Infinite  Source 
of  truth  ;  that  the  methods  of  experiment  and  observation 
are  the  divinely  appointed  way  in  which  this  appeal  is 
made  and  the  revelation  of  physical  truth  is  received  ;  and 
that  this  mode  of  revelation  is  such  that  the  mind  cannot 
entertain  a  doubt  respecting  the  certainty  or  the  reality 
of  the  truths  revealed. 

While,  as  has  been  already  stated,  the  supreme  truth  of 
a  changeless  God,  whose  mode  of  action  is  invariable, 
as  this  truth  is  revealed  by  mechanical  science,  underlies 
and  gives  direction  to  modern  religious  thought,  it  will  be 
observed  that  the  ground  on  which  this  thought  ulti- 
mately reposes  is  confidence  in  the  method  by  which  this 
truth  is  established. 


SUPERSTITION. 


MECHANICAL  science  is  the  angel  whose  spear  has  van- 
quished the  demon  of  superstition.  The  source  of  this 
power  in  mechanical  science  is  no  secret.  It  is  the  science 
which  penetrates  to  the  causes  of  phenomena.  Force,  in 
the  various  forms  of  its  manifestation,  is,  as  has  been 
observed  already,  the  cause  of  all  phenomena  whatever. 
But  force  is  unseen.  It  is  hidden  from  the  apprehension 
of  rude  and  ignorant  races.  To  them  nature  is  full  of 
mysteries.  Their  minds  are  without  guidance  in  their 
imaginative  or  form-constructing  activity.  Every  phan- 
tom becomes  to  them  a  reality.  They  people  the  earth  and 
air  with  spiritual  representations  of  their  own  dispositions, 
and  tremble  before  their  conceptions  of  natures  like  their 
own  invested  with  unlimited  power.  Their  minds  become 
the  abodes  of  superstition  and  credulity. 

The  dawn  of  light  on  this  darkness  is  the  development 
of  the  knowledge  of  force,  in  its  unvarying  and  beneficent 
activity.  This  is  not  the  full  light ;  it  is  only  the  dawn. 

Mechanical  science  is  a  science  that  diffuses  itself,  and 
exerts  a  wholesome  influence  throughout  the  masses  of 
every  civilized  society,  even  where  the  very  term  "  sci- 
ence "  is  unknown.  It  is  the  foundation  of  what  is  called 
"  common-sense,"  which  is  an  orderly  habit  of  thought, 
and  a  disposition  to  look  for  natural  and  reasonable  causes 
of  phenomena. 

33 


34  SUPERSTITION. 

Confining  our  attention  to  the  most  enlightened  na- 
tions of  the  world,  we  observe  that,  before  the  general 
cultivation  of  mechanical  science,  unlimited  credulity 
made  men  everywhere  the  victims  of  ghostly  authority. 
In  mediaeval  Europe  we  see  superstitions  and  delusions, 
which  differed  only  in  kind  from  those  of  preceding  pagan 
times,  controlling  even  the  most  cultivated  minds,  and, 
springing  out  of  these,  we  see  irrational  and  erratic  habits 
of  thought  prevailing,  with  little  check  or  guide. 

Although  there  is  still  an  abundance  of  all  this  to  be 
seen,  showing  at  once  the  incompleteness  and  the  need  of 
the  work  of  mechanical  science,  still  the  influence  already 
exerted  by  this  science,  and  the  results  accomplished  by  it, 
in  substituting,  in  place  of  all  such  vagaries,  reasonable  and 
correct  methods  of  inquiry,  and  habits  of  thought  based 
upon  and  guided  by  fixed  principles  and  laws,  have 
already  been  greater  and  more  important  than  can  be 
adequately  conceived.  Illustrations  like  the  following  in- 
dicate both  the  extent  and  the  fundamental  nature  of  this 
influence,  which  has  cooperated,  in  a  degree  that  has  not 
hitherto  been  realized,  with  other  influences  of  the  high- 
est nature,  in  delivering  the  human  mind  from  every  form 
of  bondage. 

Institutions  of  learning  do  not  now  esteem  relics  as 
their  most  precious  possessions.  Men  of  science  do  not 
now  make  a  business  of  calculating  nativities.  Courts  of 
justice  do  not  now  gravely  engage  in  the  trial  of  witches. 
But  when  mechanical  science  had  its  birth,  in  the  age  of 
Galileo  and  his  successors,  they  did  all  these  things. 
These  and  like  absurdities,  which  only  about  two  cen- 
turies ago  were  regarded  as  so  serious,  mankind  has  out- 
grown wherever  mechanical  science  has  been  cultivated, 
and  largely  through  its  influence. 

The  word  "  superstition  "  is  capable  of  a  meaning  more 


SUPERSTITION.  35 

extended  than  is  commonly  attached  to  it.  It  is  properly 
employed  to  express  any  unfounded  belief,  and  the  dis- 
position that  accepts  such  beliefs  with  readiness  is  properly 
called  superstitious.  Superstition  in  this  modified  form  is 
more  generally  recognized  under  the  term  "  credulity." 
The  practical  way  in  which  mechanical  science  goes  about 
the  work  of  destroying  this  monster,  wherever  it  finds  it, 
is  readily  shown. 

Whatever  be  the  particular  direction  that  thought  may 
take,  human  nature  always  manifests  itself  in  essentially 
the  same  way.  So  it  is  the  case  in  mechanics,  as  well  as 
in  other  branches  of  science,  and  in  speculative  philosophy, 
that  vagaries,  more  or  less  visionary,  are  appearing  con- 
tinually. In  all  these  departments  of  thought  alike, 
absurdities  are  continually  being  urged  upon  the  attention 
of  men.  This  is  a  general  manifestation  of  the  perverse 
tendency  of  thinkers,  so-called,  to  be  captivated  by  the 
work  of  their  own  imagination,  and  to  proclaim  this  as  the 
truth. 

But  there  is  a  wide  difference  in  the  credence  that  these 
mechanical  and  philosophical  speculations  command.  Me- 
chanical science  possesses  the  important  advantage  of 
being  able  to  bring  all  conceits  that  appear  in  her  realm 
sharply  to  the  test  of  experiment.  "  How  will  it  work  ?  " 
is  the  pitiless  question,  and  but  little  interest  can  be 
aroused  in  any  supposed  invention  until  this  question  has 
been  satisfactorily  answered. 

One  occasionally  hears  of  a  person  who  is  cherishing  a 
pet  mechanical  conceit.  It  is  opposed  to  mechanical 
principles;  but  he  is  quite  innocent  of  these,  and,  as  they 
antagonize  his  supposed  invention,  he  cannot  admit  them 
into  his  mind.  He  is  sure  of  the  soundness  of  his  plan. 
It  takes  complete  possession  of  him.  Some  one  is  induced, 
or  more  probably  a  number  of  persons  combine,  to  con- 


36  SUPERSTITION. 

struct  a  machine  which  shall  at  the  same  time  demonstrate 
the  invention,  and  show  the  inventor  to  the  world. 

A  trial  is  made,  and  lo ! — as  was  the  case  a  few  years 
ago  with  a  propelling  apparatus  that  was  constructed  on 
what  was  represented  to  be  a  new  principle,  and  which, 
when  it  came  to  be  tried,  was  found  to  produce  no  effect 
in  moving  the  boat  in  any  direction,— the  whole  thing 
vanishes  into  thin  air.  The  reflection  of  the  thoughtful 
observer  is :  "  What  a  pity  that  the  same  disposition 
cannot  be  as  quickly  and  effectually  made  of  the  vain 
speculations  ^hich,  under  the  name  of  philosophy,  are 
continually  wearying  the  ear."  Here,  for  want  of  checks 
that  can  be  promptly  applied,  we  see  advocates  of  all 
sorts  of  theories  doing  serious  harm  by  confident  assertions 
and  plausible  reasonings,  which  one  experiment,  if  only  it 
could  be  fairly  tried,  would  dissipate  forever. 

Mechanical  science  operates  powerfully,  however,  to 
reach  absurdities  of  the  latter  character  also,  by  its  indi- 
rect influence,  and  by  the  general  habit  of  thought  that  it 
develops.  It  thus  becomes,  in  the  largest  sense,  an  im- 
portant educator,  and  one  the  influence  of  which  is  felt 
throughout  the  masses  of  society. 

Men,  who  in  any  department  of  mechanics  with  which 
they  are  acquainted  observe  continually  the  natural  adap- 
tation of  means  to  ends,  become  accustomed  to  the  uniform 
operation  of  unvarying  laws,  and  see  idle  conceits,  formed 
in  contravention  of  these  laws,  continually  exposed  and 
thrown  aside.  In  this  way  they  insensibly  acquire  a 
stability  of  character  and  correct  habits  of  thought,  and 
are  not  likely  to  be  led  away  by  delusions  of  any  sort. 

They  observe  that  in  mechanics  there  exist  fundamental 
principles  which  must  be  regarded,  and  they  naturally 
look  everywhere  else  also  for  general  requirements  of  a 
corresponding  nature.  They  become  accustomed  to  rea- 


SUPERSTITION.  37 

sonfng  with  some  degree  of  precision,  so  that  vague  gen- 
eralities have  little  or  no  effect  upon  their  minds.  They 
consider,  correctly  enough,  that  absurdities  are  quite  as 
likely  to  arise  in  other  departments  of  thought  as  they  are 
in  mechanics  ;  and  they  come  to  be  on  their  guard  against 
specious  novelties,  in  whatever  form  these  may  be  pre- 
sented. 

In  a  later  paper  the  opportunity  will  be  found  for  giving 
to  this  line  of  thought  a  more  particular  direction.  We 
may  properly  observe  here,  that,  at  the  present  day,  when 
free  thought  is  coming  to  be  more  and  more  general,  and 
the  minds  of  the  masses  of  mankind  are  awakening  to  an 
increased  activity,  it  is  certainly  a  gratifying  feature  of  the 
case,  calling  for  sincere  congratulation,  that  there  exists  a 
conservative  influence  or  power  so  strong,  and  at  the 
same  time  so  all-pervading,  as  mechanical  science  has 
shown  itself  to  be. 

It  is  difficult  to  draw  a  line  between  the  destructive  and 
the  constructive  forces  of  mechanical  science  ;  just  as  it  is 
difficult  to  distinguish  between  the  effects  of  light  in  dis- 
sipating the  phantoms  and  chimeras  that  filled  the  dark- 
ness, and  in  revealing  the  world  around  us  in  its  reality. 
So  also  the  direct  and  the  indirect  influences  which  are 
exerted  by  this  science  blend  insensibly  with  one  another. 
It  must  be  sufficient,  therefore,  merely  to  call  attention  to 
those  distinctions,  without  attempting  to  observe  them 
strictly  in  our  argument.  These  being  borne  in  mind,  all 
the  beneficent  influences  of  mechanical  science  may  prop- 
erly be  considered  together. 


THE  JUDICIAL  SPIRIT. 


IN  a  former  paper  I  have  endeavored  to  show  the  in- 
fluence of  mechanical  science,  in  combating  one  weakness 
that  is  common  to  men — namely,  the  disposition  to  assume 
and  to  submit  to  authority  in  matters  of  belief.  We  have 
now  to  observe  another  influence  of  an  equally  healthful 
character,  which  is  exerted  by  mechanics  with  equal  force, 
in  resisting  another  weakness  more  subtle  and,  if  possible, 
more  dangerous  than  that. 

Here  as  there  the  work  of  mechanical  science  will  be 
found  to  be,  not  negative  merely,  but  affirmative  as  well. 
In  both  alike  it  tears  down  only  that  it  may  build  up. 
There  we  found  this  science  establishing  individual  free- 
dom of  thought,  and  direct  access  to  the  Infinite  Source 
of  truth.  Here  it  will  be  found  developing  that  spirit  or 
disposition  by  which  only  it  is  possible  for  truth  to  be 
apprehended. 

Many  minds  are  found,  even  among  men  of  intellect- 
ual power  and  influence,  who  are  accustomed  in  a  greater 
or  lesser  degree  to  look  within  themselves  for  the  criterion 
of  truth — who  seem  irresistibly  inclined  to  believe  that 
because  any  thing  appears  to  them  to  be  true,  therefore  it 
is  true.  They  would  hesitate  to  declare  this  in  so  many 
words.  Indeed  they  would  most  likely  be  offended  if 
their  real  mental  operations  were  exposed,  even  to  them- 
selves. But  in  reality  they  can  never  see  that,  although 

38 


THE  JUDICIAL   SPIRIT.  39 

a  certain  idea  may  appear  to  them  to  be  true,  that  fact  in 
itself  does  not  afford  any  reason  for  concluding  that  it  is 
true.  They  cannot  perceive  that  truth  must  be  estab- 
lished wholly  by  evidence  existing  outside  of  their  own 
minds, — that  in  balancing  the  reasons  for  and  against  any 
belief,  the  belief  itself,  even  though  it  be  held  by  them- 
selves, ought  to  weigh  nothing.1 

This  weakness  is  exhibited  by  different  minds  in  various 
degrees.  Indeed,  it  is  doubtful  if  there  lives  a  man  who  is 
entirely  free  from  it,  who  in  examining  a  question  about 
which  he  already  holds  a  belief  can  in  all  cases  bring  to 
the  consideration  of  that  question  a  perfectly  judicial 
spirit,  can  distinguish  absolutely  between  the  proper  evi- 
dence and  his  o\vn  prepossessions,  and  form  an  unbiassed 
judgment.  Many  men,  it  is  true,  are  found  capable  of 
forming  singularly  impersonal  judgments  on  many  ques- 
tions, but  we  shall  catch  them  somewhere.  On  some  side 
of  their  minds  prejudice  is  sure  to  appear.  The  necessity 
for  ignoring  all  prepossessions  if  the  truth  is  to  be  seen,  if 
the  idea  formed  in  the  mind  is  to  conform  to  the  reality, 
is  obvious  ;  but  who  is  there  that  can  always  do  this  ? 
Who  is  able,  in  every  case,  to  free  himself  from  the  pleas- 
ing conceit,  that  what  he  believes  must  be  true? 

There  are  cases  in  which  this  weakness  appears  in  its 
extremest  form  ;  in  which  it  is  obvious  that,  habitually, 
the  necessity  is  not  perceived  for  bestowing  much  atten- 
tion upon  external  evidence,  and  still  less  for  giving 
weight  to  the  views  of  others,  but  the  mind  is  satisfied 
with  the  short  train  of  reasoning  already  stated  ;  the  indi- 
vidual being  probably  unconscious  of  his  weakness,  nay, 
willingly  blind  to  it. 

It  is  interesting  to  consider  what  must  be  the  major 

1  It  will,  of  course,  be  understood  that  reference  is  not  made  here  to  self- 
evident  truths. 


4O  THE  JUDICIAL   SPIRIT. 

premise  of  the  syllogism,  from  which  a  conclusion  of  this 
sort  can  be  drawn.  This  is,  that,  so  far  at  least  as  relates 
to  the  question  at  issue,  my  knowledge  is  infinite,  all 
things  in  reality  are  just  as  they  appear  to  me  to  be.  It 
is  only  on  this  general  assumption,  that  any  one  can  say 
or  can  feel :  this  appears  to  me  to  be  true,  therefore  I  am 
satisfied  that  it  is  true. 

The  fact  of  this  common  weakness  of  our  nature  ex- 
plains why  so  little  progress  towards  the  establishment  of 
truth  is  usually  made  by  discussions,  and  why  the  curious 
result  is  almost  always  observed  to  follow  from  these,  that 
each  side  is  more  firmly  fixed  in  its  own  belief  than  it  was 
before. 

This  infirmity  is  one  of  the  principal  causes  of  sectarian- 
ism in  religion.  The  division  of  the  Protestant  Christian 
world  into  sects  presents  a  most  interesting  phenomenon. 
A  survey  of  the  multitude  of  religious  sects  that  have  ap- 
peared since  the  Reformation,  shows  that,  at  the  bottom, 
modern  sectarianism  has  been  a  natural  extreme  reaction 
from  the  bondage  to  spiritual  authority,  and  to  enforced 
uniformity  of  belief,  which  had  been  the  condition  for 
many  centuries.  At  the  same  time  the  tendencies  to 
superadd  human  inventions  upon  divine  truth,  to  ex- 
press that  truth  in  formulas  which  reflect  the  limited 
and  perverted  conceptions  of  it  that  are  formed  by  men, 
and  to  exercise  and  submit  to  spiritual  despotism,  have 
shown  their  universal  characters,  by  appearing  also  in 
degrees  more  or  less  marked  in  every  Protestant  organ- 
ization. 

The  sectarian  feeling  is  that  disposition  which  seeks  after 
distinctive  peculiarities  of  belief,  and  which  cherishes  these 
points  of  difference  with  especial  zeal.  Sometimes  this 
feeling  finds  its  excuse  in  attributing  undue  importance 
to  particular  truths.  Sometimes  it  is  seen  in  attachment 


THE  JUDICIAL   SPIRIT.  41 

to  a  cherished  notion,  which  in  reality  is  immaterial  or 
even  unwarranted.  Most  Christian  sects  show  the  endur- 
ing impress  of  some  commanding  but  necessarily  imper- 
fect mind,  which  for  its  adherents  in  some  degree  takes 
the  place  of  and  hides  the  Christ.  There  are  cases  in 
which  the  distinctive  peculiarity  of  the  sect,  about  which 
its  members  are  strenuous  above  all  other  things,  is  some- 
thing very  whimsical. 

Sectarian  feelings  are  the  opposite  of  Christian  feelings. 
Sectarianism  is  directly  at  variance  with  the  unity  which 
the  Christ  so  earnestly  prayed  might  exist  among  his  dis- 
ciples. The  observations  which  are  suggested  by  sectarian- 
ism are  therefore  not  observations  upon  Christianity,  but 
upon  its  opposite. 

When  once  a  religious  sect  has  been  formed,  multiplied 
and  sometimes  extensive  associations  and  interests  be- 
come involved  in  the  maintenance  of  its  separate  existence. 
These  interests  and  associations  are,  of  course,  quite  dis- 
tinct from  any  logical  reason  for  the  separate  existence  of 
such  a  sect.  Nevertheless,  they  sometimes  become  the 
principal  motives  for  its  continuance. 

These  interests  and  associations  impel  to  strenuous,  and 
in  some  cases  to  extreme,  defences  of  the  distinctive  tenets 
of  the  sect,  although  these  tenets  may  have  been  formu- 
lated under  conditions  of  thought  which  are  now  obvi- 
ously imperfect,  and  which,  in  developing  to  a  rounder 
and  fuller  spiritual  life,  Christians  have  outgrown,  or  are 
outgrowing. 

Upon  a  comprehensive  view  of  this  subject  it  becomes 
apparent  that  sectarianism  belongs  to  the  period  of  spir- 
itual childhood.  It  presents  every  characteristic  of  this 
age.  In  this  earlier  period  of  spiritual  growth,  out  of  the 
conditions  of  which  it  sprang,  and  to  which  it  has  been, 
and  still  is,  although  in  a  continually  diminishing  degree, 


42  THE  JUDICIAL   SPIRIT. 

adapted,  sectarianism  has  had  its  essential  mission  to  ful- 
fil. It  has  been  the  necessarily  limited  form,  under  which, 
in  these  earlier  stages  of  the  spiritual  life  of  the  race, 
religious  zeal  and  devotion  have  found  their  expression. 

Sectarianism  exists,  however,  only  as  a  step  to  something 
higher.  Antagonism,  which  is  of  the  earth,  earthly,  must 
pass  into  concord,  which  is  from  heaven.  The  human 
must  give  place  to  the  divine.  Mature  spiritual  life  rises 
far  above  many  trifles,  which,  in  our  infantile  and  conten- 
tious age,  have  appeared  of  such  solemn  importance. 

The  tendency  to  sectarian  division  has  passed  its  cul- 
minating point.  The  current  of  Christian  feeling  is  now 
clearly  in  the  opposite  direction.  The  antagonisms  of 
former  times  are  something  that  Christians  at  the  present 
day  can  only  with  difficulty  form  an  idea  of.  The  period 
of  Christian  unity  is  evidently  approaching.  All  the  novel 
influences  by  which  men  are  now  surrounded,  and  of  which 
they  are  only  partly  conscious,  are  insensibly  operating  to 
bring  the  minds  of  individuals,  in  the  exercise  of  their 
free  activity,  into  a  state  of  charity  and  harmony  with 
regard  to  spiritual  truth. 

Among  the  influences  which  are  tending  to  liberate  the 
mind  from  bondage  to  all  the  inventions  of  men,  those 
exerted  by  mechanical  science  must  be  accorded  a  prom- 
inent place.  That  which  may  be  termed  the  external 
influence  of  this  science,  or  that  influence  which  it  exerts 
in  breaking  down  the  barriers  that  have  separated  and 
isolated  the  various  races  of  mankind,  and  in  ameliorating 
their  conditions,  with  the  immediate  effect  of  destroying 
prejudices,  enlarging  the  range,  of  thought,  multiplying 
human  relations,  and  broadening  human  sympathies, — all 
this  work  of  mechanical  science  is  of  course  obvious. 

But  deeper  than  this  is  its  influence  upon  thought. 
Not  only  has  it  contributed  to  make  thought  free,  but  its 


THE  JUDICIAL   SPIRIT.  43 

influence  is  exerted  even  more  strongly  to  gi\re  to  free 
thought  its  proper  direction.  Anticipating  in  some  degree 
the  conclusions  of  subsequent  papers,  we  may  observe 
here  that  mechanical  science  gives  precision  and  definite- 
ness  to  the  use  of  language,  substitutes  ideas  of  uniformity 
in  place  of  those  of  caprice,  and  destroys  the  delusion  that 
truth  is  to  be  arrived  at  by  speculative  methods. 

There  are  no  sects  in  mechanics.  No  warring  schools 
contend  here,  as  in  medicine.  No  conflicting  views  are 
put  forth  and  battled  for  in  mechanics.  And  why?  Be- 
cause mechanical  science  appeals  at  once  to  the  infallible 
criterion  of  truth.  "  Thus  saith  the  Lord  "  is  the  only 
declaration  to  which  it  yields  its  assent.  For  the  most  part 
unconsciously,  but  none  the  less  really  on  that  account, 
and  none  the  less  trustingly,  the  engineer  listens  for  the 
voice  of  God.  Whenever  this  voice  is  clearly  heard  de- 
claring physical  truth,  it  is  recognized  with  gladness,  and 
thus  we  have  MECHANICAL  SCIENCE. 

The  power  of  mechanical  science  in  correcting  false 
methods  of  thought  lies  mainly  in  the  fact  that  all  its 
conclusions  must  be  based  on  evidence  which  exists 
wholly  outside  the  individual.  It  appears,  indeed,  to  the 
superficial  observer,  as  if  the  very  weaknesses,  the  nature 
of  which  has  just  been  exposed,  were  especially  liable 
to  appear  in  mechanics.  This,  however,  is  because  in 
mechanics  absurdities  are  always  detected,  and  are  shown 
in  their  true  light.  In  other  departments  of  thought 
these  often  pass  for  wisdom. 

Before  the  tests  of  truth  which  mechanical  science  em- 
ploys, all  preconceptions  and  prejudices,  all  influence  of 
association,  or  of  education,  or  of  habits  of  thought,  all 
mere  words,  which,  however  established  by  usage,  or  im- 
posed by  dogmatic  authority,  in  reality  mean  nothing,  all 
pride  of  opinion  or  of  place,  all  conceit  as  to  any  thing 


44  THE  JUDICIAL   SPIRIT. 

that  for  any  reason  may  strike  the  mind  favorably, — all 
these  things  that  so  darken  the  understanding,  and  render 
it  incapable  of  apprehending  truth,  or  of  giving  to  differ- 
ent truths  their  proper  relative  importance,  are  at  once 
and  forever  swept  away. 

The  individual  may,  and  often  does,  cling  to  mechanical 
delusions,  in  which  case  he  also  disappears.  The  practical 
application  of  an  idea  in  a  working  machine  frequently 
destroys  in  an  hour  the  cherished  fancies  of  years.  From 
this  crucial  test  no  inventor  can  escape.  It  searches,  not 
only  his  work,  but  also  himself.  It  reveals  at  once  his 
genius,  his  knowledge,  and  his  disposition.  The  latter  is 
generally  the  real  thing,  or  at  least  it  indicates  the  posses- 
sion or  the  want  of  the  real  thing. 

No  one  who  conceives  of  himself  as  already  knowing 
any  thing  that  he  has  not  profoundly  and  experimentally 
studied,  no  one  who  brings  to  his  work  the  disposition  that 
has  been  described  in  this  paper,  can  ever  either  produce 
any  thing  or  learn  any  thing  in  mechanics.  He  exemplifies 
the  proverb  :  "  Though  thou  shouldst  bray  a  fool  in  a  mor- 
tar among  wheat  with  a  pestle,  yet  will  not  his  foolishness 
depart  from  him." 

A  good  illustration  of  this  disposition  recently  came  un- 
der my  observation.  A  legal  gentleman  of  an  unusually 
acute  and  discriminating  mind,  but  who  had  of  course 
been  trained  to  see  the  truth  only  in  his  side  of  a  contro- 
versy, conceived  himself  to  be  an  inventor,  and,  of  all  the 
foolishness  in  the  world,  he  hit  upon  that  of  making  rail- 
way cars  to  run  upon  skates,  instead  of  on  wheels.  He 
actually  obtained  a  patent  for  this  invention,  and  then  pro- 
ceeded to  urge  it  upon  the  attention  of  engineers. 

The  case  was  an  interesting  one  from  a  psychological 
point  of  view.  Argument  was  wasted  on  him.  He  was 
asked  :  "  How  will  your  skates  slide  on  the  greased  rails 


THE  JUDICIAL   SPIRIT.  45 

when,  as  will  happen  directly,  these  become  covered  with 
dust  adhering  to  them  ?  "  "  That,  gentlemen,"  he  replied 
with  an  air  o.f  triumph,  as  if  he  were  destroying  the  effect 
of  the  question  on  the  mind  of  a  court,  "  is  something  for 
you  to  provide  against." 

The  conversation  then  took  this  form  :  He  was  asked, 
"  Did  you  ever  hear  of  the  mechanical  device  termed  the 
wheel  and  axle  ?  " 

"  Oh,  most  certainly,  gentlemen  ;  you  cannot  teach  me 
any  thing  about  that." 

"  You  know,  then,  that  one  of  its  offices  is  to  reduce  the 
waste  of  power  that  is  suffered  in  overcoming  friction  ; 
that  it  accomplishes  this  object  by  diminishing,  very 
greatly,  the  amount  of  sliding  motion  of  one  surface  upon 
another,  transforming  that  which  is  so  got  rid  of  into  roll- 
ing motion  of  the  periphery  of  the  wheel  on  the  road  or 
the  rail ;  and  that  the  small  surfaces,  in  the  axle  and  box, 
that  still  slide  on  each  other  are  certainly  lubricated  and 
protected  from  dust." 

"  Gentlemen,"  he  replied  with  energy,  "  I  have  absolute 
confidence  in  the  value  of  my  invention.  All  that  I  re- 
quire is  capital  to  enable  me  to  demonstrate  it." 

"  You  will  need  for  that  purpose,"  his  interlocutors  an- 
swered, "  about  twenty-five  dollars.  With  this  sum  you 
will  make  a  little  model,  on  which  the  difference  can  be 
shown  at  once  between  the  power  required  to  move,  say, 
five  pounds,  along  a  line  of  rails,  when  set  on  skates,  and 
when  carried  on  wheels." 

The  suggestion  was  resented,  as  trifling  with  his  inven- 
tion. 

This  example  illustrates  the  character  of  mind  that  truth 
cannot  enter, — a  mind  that  is  already  completely  occupied 
with  its  own  preposessions.  Yet  such  a  mind  is  not 
wholly  self-deceived.  While  loudly  proclaiming  the  cer- 


46  THE  JUDICIAL   SPIRIT. 

tainty  of  its  belief,  it  is  careful  to  avoid  a  fair  test  of  it. 
Minds  of  this  character  prefer,  generally,  some  department 
of  thought,  in  which  their  dogmas  cannot  be  brought  to 
the  test  of  an  observation.  This  is  the  disposition  that 
controversy  develops,  and  by  which  in  turn  controversy  is 
perpetuated.  It  is  the  disposition  which  is  in  all  respects 
the  opposite  of  that  which  mechanical  science  demands, 
and  which  all  the  influences  of  this  science  combine  to 
produce. 

Let  us  now,  by  way  of  contrast,  suppose  a  disposition 
of  the  latter  kind,  and  approximations  to  which  are  by  no 
means  rare,  in  the  case  of  a  real  inventor,  who  is  possessed 
of  that  choice  gift,  a  judicial  spirit ;  a  spirit  humble, 
teachable,  and  honest,  both  with  itself  and  others.  Such 
a  man  conceives  of  something  new,  and  which  appears  to 
him  to  be  practicable.  In  reflecting  on  his  idea,  he  finds 
after  a  while  that  he  has  reached  a  point,  from  which  he 
can  make  no  further  progress  by  thinking.  His  invention 
has  been  matured  in  his  mind,  so  far  as  he  can  go. 

He  now  proceeds  to  construct  his  machine,  or  apparatus, 
or  whatever  the  device  may  be,  according  to  the  light  he 
has.  Then  he  puts  it  into  operation,  sits  down  before  it 
like  a  little  child,  opens  his  mind  wide  to  receive  instruc- 
tion, and  lets  the  invention  itself  teach  him,  by  its  practi- 
cal working. 

His  spirit  being  entirely  receptive,  he  is  sure  to  receive 
the  revelation.  This  revelation  may  be,  it  often  is,  that 
his  scheme  is  radically  defective,  that  his  idea  is  a  delu- 
sion, that  there  is  nothing  in  it. 

He  recognizes  the  infallible  character  of  the  criterion 
to  which  he  has  appealed,  and  percejves  the  demonstration 
of  the  unwelcome  truth  in  its  full  force.  It  costs  him  a 
pang  and  a  tear,  but,  as  he  sees  his  dreams  melt  away,  he 
feels  that  he  has  learned  something,  that  he  has  been  to 


THE  JUDICIAL    SPIRIT,  47 

the  fountain  of  knowledge  and  has  received  instruction, 
and  that  he  is  capable  of  better  things  than  he  was  capa- 
ble of  before. 

Instead  of  total  condemnation,  the  disclosure  may  be 
that  something  he  never  thought  of,  just  in  the  last  place 
he  would  have  expected,  is  wrong  or  wanting.  Some- 
times defects  will  appear  that  puzzle  him,  and  the  nature 
of  which  can  be  discovered  only  by  long  study.  Perhaps, 
again,  the  revelation  may  be — if  the  scheme  is  a  radically 
new  one  it  is  pretty  sure  to  be, — that  extensive  changes 
must  be  made,  before  the  invention  can  be  fairly  judged. 
All  real  inventions  are  slowly  reached  through  just  such 
discouraging  revelations. 

A  fact  here  confronts  us,  that  is  well  suited  to  command 
our  attention.  In  every  attempt  made  by  man  to  produce 
any  thing  of  a  novel  character,  something  is  sure  to  be 
wrong.  No  finite  intelligence  ever,  on  the  first  attempt, 
produced  or  conceived  of  even  the  simplest  thing,  in  the 
form  that  was  finally  found  to  be  correct  and  satisfactory. 
This  is  a  fact  of  human  experience.  One  who  imagines 
that  he  would  form  an  exception  to  this  law  would  be  the 
last  of  all  to  approximate  to  initial  excellence. 

An  individual  may,  from  a  knowledge  of  general  princi- 
ples, and  from  familiarity  with  like  attempts,  be  able  to 
say,  in  any  particular  case,  what  will  not  answer  ;  to  de- 
tect, perhaps  at  a  glance,  defects  that  are  hidden  from 
others ;  but  whenever  he  attempts  to  produce  any  thing 
new,  even  in  the  field  with  which  he  is  most  familiar, 
something  will  certainly  escape  him,  until  it  is  revealed  by 
experiment.  The  variety  of  possible  conditions  and  com- 
binations is  so  great,  and  the  range  of  our  thought  is  so 
closely  limited  to  our  previous  experience,  that  successful 
inventors  always  come  to  be  astonished  at  the  crudity  of 
their  first  attempts. 


48  THE  JUDICIAL   SPIRIT. 

It  should  be  observed,  that  the  word  "  new  "  is  rarely 
employed  in  an  absolute  sense.  In  the  comparative  use 
of  this  word,  there  are  endless  degrees  of  novelty.  Gen- 
erally, in  mechanics  the  word  "  new  "  is  employed  to  mean 
merely  new  arrangements,  or  the  application  to  new  uses, 
of  devices  which  are  familiar.  In  some  of  the  more  sim- 
ple of  these  novel  combinations  of  familiar  devices  it 
occasionally  happens  that  a  person  of  experience  in  their 
use,  by  careful  study,  succeeds  in  his  first  attempt.  But, 
on  the  other  hand,  for  any  finite  mind  to  enter  upon  that 
which  is  new  in  mechanics,  in  any  thing  like  the  absolute 
sense  of  this  term,  is  like  entering  an  unknown  sea,  whose 
extent  and  every  indentation  of  whose  shores  must  be 
learned  by  observation. 

The  fact  is  an  obvious  one  to  every  candid  mind,  and  is 
one  which  all  experience  impresses  more  deeply,  that  only 
an  infinite  intelligence  can  comprehend  beforehand,  and 
can  embrace  in  its  view,  all  the  conditions  and  require- 
ments that  will  manifest  themselves  in  the  operation  of  a 
new  device.  Man  must  grope  his  way  through  darkness 
into  the  light. 

The  following  general  conclusions  seem  to  be  warranted, 
as  the  clear  teaching  of  mechanical  science  respecting 
physical  truth  : 

First. — Although  the  mind  may  be  wholly  unconscious 
with  whom  it  has  communed,  physical  truth  is  to  be  found 
only  through  a  direct  appeal  to  the  Infinite  Source  of 
truth  ;  and 

Second. — Only  the  teachable  spirit,  completely  emptied 
of  self,  can  recognize  the  existence  of  the  source  of  truth, 
or  can  receive  from  it  the  revelation  which  is  always 
ready  to  be  imparted. 

These  conclusions  are  here  limited  to  physical  truth. 


THE  JUDICIAL   SPIRIT.  49 

As  we  advance  in  this  discussion  their  universal  nature 
will  appear,  even  before  we  come  to  observe  the  unity,  or 
rather  the  identity,  of  physical  and  spiritual  truth.  The 
fruitless  nature  of  the  attempts,  that  have  been  and  are 
still  being  made,  to  find  the  criterion  of  truth  anywhere, 
except  in  the  Deity  himself,  or  to  learn  truth  by  any 
means,  except  by  direct  appeal  to  Him,  ought,  it  would 
seem,  so  far  at  least  as  respects  the  physical  modes  of  its 
expression,  to  be  sufficiently  obvious. 

The  importance  of  the  preceding  discussion  will  also 
become  more  apparent  as  we  proceed.  When  we  get 
down  to  the  root  of  the  matter,  we  shall  invariably 
find  that  the  disposition  of  men  to  look  within  them- 
selves for  the  criterion  of  truth,  to  bring  infinite  truth 
within  the  narrow  limits  of  their  understanding,  and  to 
read  revelation,  both  natural  and  verbal,  in  the  light 
of  their  own  dispositions  and  fixed  habits  of  thought, 
has  been  the  fruitful  source  both  of  philosophical  and  of 
religious  error, — -of  false  systems  of  thought  and  belief  and 
education. 

On  the  other  hand,  we  shall  find  that  the  truly  philo- 
sophic disposition,  the  disposition  to  look  for  the  criterion 
of  truth  wholly  outside  ourselves,  in  the  infinite  perfec- 
tion of  God,  is  the  only  disposition  that  can  find  the  cure 
for  all  these  absurdities,  that  can  discover  the  sure  cri- 
terion of  truth,  and  can  permit  this  to  exert  its  legitimate 
influence  on  thought,  on  the  emotional  nature,  and  on 
human  conduct.  It  is  by  the  methods  and  the  direct 
revelations  and  the  certain  analogies  of  mechanical  science 
that  men  are  slowly  becoming  educated  to  the  willingness, 
nay,  even  to  the  ability,  thus  to  look  away  from  them- 
selves to  the  infinite  and  changeless  God. 


THE    UNITY    OF    THE    MIND. 


IN  reflecting  upon  the  general  subject  of  these  papers, 
and  on  the  mode  in  which  the  views  maintained  in  them 
could  be  presented  with  clearness,  I  found  myself  em- 
barrassed by  the  term  "  faculty,"  and  the  meaning  that  is 
affixed  to  this  term,  comprehending,  as  it  is  made  to  do, 
certain  functions  and  activities  of  the  mind,  to  the  exclu- 
sion of  others.  I  was  still  more  embarrassed  by  the  sharp 
distinction  that  is  drawn  between  our  intellectual  and  our 
moral  natures,  and  the  influence  of  this  distinction  upon 
thought  and  instruction. 

Although  recent  philosophy  has  come  to  admit  the 
unity  of  the  mind,  still  this  truth  must  be  said  as  yet  to 
be  only  recognized,  rather  than  properly  taught.  It  is 
not  accorded  that  prominence  which  its  supreme  import- 
ance deserves.  On  the  contrary,  the  influence  of  earlier 
and  crude  conceptions  continues  with  little  diminution. 
The  term  "  faculty  "  is  retained,  and  continues  to  serve 
its  old  purpose.  This  is  said  to  be  done  for  convenience 
in  classifying  mental  operations.  The  effect  of  its  reten- 
tion is  effectually  to  prevent  the  adequate  apprehension 
by  the  learner  of  the  truth  of  the  unity  of  the  mind,  and 
to  prevent  this  truth  from  being  followed  out  to  its 
legitimate  results,  or  from  exerting  its  legitimate  influence. 
The  popular  mind,  and  to  a  large  extent  the  educated 
mind  as  well,  remains  even  ignorant  of  its  existence. 

50 


THE  UNITY  OF  THE  MIND.  3! 

For  all  the  benefit  that  is  to  be  derived  from  that 
general  recognition  of  the  unity  of  the  mind  which  is 
made  in  our  later  systems  of  philosophy,  and  for  any  aid 
that  can  be  afforded  by  it  to  a  discussion  such  as  the 
present  one,  this  recognition  might  as  well  not  have  been 
made.  The  argument  to  be  presented  in  these  papers 
requires  that  this  really  fundamental  truth  should  be  dis- 
tinctly apprehended.  This  argument  will  in  fact  be 
found  ultimately  to  rest  upon  the  underlying  truth  that 
the  mind  is  a  unit.  Before  proceeding  further,  this  truth 
must  be  established. 

From  time  immemorial  the  human  mind  has  been  divided 
and  subdivided  after  different  fashions,  and  these  divisions 
have  been  classified  and  arranged  into  systems,  and  such 
methods  or  analyses  have  been  taught  by  teachers  who 
had  themselves  been  taught  them,  just  as  if  these  divi- 
sions of  the  mind,  instead  of  being  wholly  imaginary,  were 
as  real  and  substantial  as  are  the  physical  divisions  of  the 
globe. 

Thus  according  to  accepted  systems  we  possess  the 
faculties  of  the  reason  and  the  understanding,  the  percep- 
tive faculties,  the  faculty  of  the  will,  the  faculties  of  the 
memory  and  the  imagination,  the  aesthetic  faculty,  and 
the  faculty  by  which  we  distinguish  between  right  and 
wrong.  To  these  some  theologians  have  added  the  faith 
faculty. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  emotional  nature  is  represented 
as  being  without  faculties.  Nothing  is  admitted  to  be  a 
faculty  that  does  not  come  within  the  category  of  what 
are  termed  the  intellectual  powers.  We  can,  therefore, 
have  no  faculties  with  which  we  rejoice  or  grieve,  or  love 
or  hate.  We  do  all  these  things,  but  we  do  them  without 
the  employment  of  any  faculties. 

In  opposition  to  all  this  imaginary  machinery,  stands 


52  THE  UNITY  OF  THE  MIND. 

the  simple  truth  that  the  spirit  is  a  unit.  What  have 
been  termed  faculties,  as  well  as  the  operations  of  what  is 
distinguished  as  the  emotional  nature,  are  only  the  differ- 
ent modes  of  our  spiritual  activity;  into  each  form  of 
which  activity,  as  this  form  is  determined  by  the  occasion, 
the  spirit  directs  its  whole  power. 

The  spirit  is  a  unit.  It  is  the  same  conscious  self  that 
perceives,  and  thinks,  and  feels,  that  performs  every 
mental  operation,  and  is  sensitive  to  every  moral  and 
emotional  impulse. 

It  is  the  one  self-conscious  indivisible  being,  that  suc- 
cessively observes  and  remembers,  that  reflects  upon  the 
images  that  it  has  formed  in  consciousness  by  observing, 
and  which  it  retains  or  recalls  there  by  remembering,  that 
judges,  that  decides,  that  resolves,  that  impels  to  speech 
or  to  bodily  activity,  that  constructs  imaginary  forms, 
that  grieves  or  rejoices,  that  loves  or  hates,  that  is  true  or 
deceitful. 

It  is  the  conscious  intellectual,  moral,  and  emotional 
unit,  in  its  completeness,  that  as  such  unit  exercises  itself 
in  all  of  these  different  ways,  as  the  occasion  calls  for  such 
exercise,  and  in  each  one  according  to  its  development  in 
power  and  disposition. 

As  the  sunlight,  though  manifold  in  its  composition,  is 
a  unit,  and  as  all  life  which  it  calls  into  being  would  be 
different  in  some  respect,  if  the  constitution  of  the  sun- 
light were  in  any  particular  different,  so  every  act  that  we 
perform,  every  thought  to  which  we  give  shape,  and  every 
emotion  that  we  feel  would  be  in  some  respect  a  different 
act,  or  thought,  or  emotion,  if  our  whole  combined  intel- 
lectual, moral,  and  emotional  nature  were  in  any  particular 
different  from  what  it  is.  Every  act,  and  thought,  and 
feeling  is  the  act,  or  thought,  or  feeling  of  our  spiritual 
being  as  a  whole. 


THE  UNITY  OF  THE  MIND.  53 

No  intelligible  meaning  can  be  affixed  to  the  term  "  fac- 
ulty," except  "  a  mode  of  exercise,"  "  a  form  of  spiritual 
activity."  In  the  ordinary  substantive  sense  of  this  term, 
if  indeed  any  one  can  define  this  sense,  there  are  no  such 
things  as  faculties. 

The  incorrectness  of  saying  that  we  possess  faculties  is 
abundantly  exposed  by  the  fact,  that  when  we  are  once 
accustomed  to  admit  this  form  of  expression,  we  do  not 
perceive  the  absurdity  of  proceeding  further,  and  saying 
that  we  possess  minds,  or  even  that  we  possess  souls.  The 
fact  is,  we  are  minds,  and  what  have  been  termed  the  fac- 
ulties of  our  minds  are  in  reality  only  some  of  the  various 
forms  or  modes  of  our  spiritual  activity. 

It  is  a  curious  and  instructive  study  to  trace  the  origin 
of  this  arbitrary  division  of  the  mind  into  these  imaginary 
distinct  and  unrelated  faculties.  These  divisions  were  ob- 
viously the  product  of  a  rude  process  of  thought,  similar  to 
that  which  evolved  the  system  of  polytheism. 

In  earlier  ages  men  observed  the  various  divisions  of 
natural  objects,  but  had  no  conception  of  the  unity  in 
which  these  divisions  are  combined.  They  created,  there- 
fore, in  their  imaginations  a  separate  divinity  over 
each  one  of  them.  Then,  observing  in  the  same  isolated 
fashion  their  own  different  occupations  and  interests,  they 
imagined  other  divinities,  also,  presiding  over  each  one  of 
these.  The  tendency  of  the  heathen  mind  has  always 
been  to  multiply  these  imaginary  deities. 

The  conception  of  one  God  is  the  most  sublime  of  all 
possible  conceptions.  Science  has  shown  the  unity  of  the 
creation,  a  unity  comprehending  the  universe,  and  which 
is  expressed  by  its  name.  It  has  thus  demonstrated  the 
truth  of  this  conception  of  one  Supreme  Being. 

We  are  taught  that  this  great  truth  of  the  divine  unity 
was  imparted  to  mankind  by  direct  revelation.  The  ob- 


54  THE  UNITY  OF  THE  MIND. 

servation  of  the  uniform  tendency  of  the  mind  in  the 
opposite  direction,  or  to  the  multiplication  of  divinities,  as 
illustrated  in  all  pagan  history,  affords  strong  confirmation 
of  this  doctrine.  If,  however,  any  doubt  remains  that  a 
direct  revelation  was  necessary  in  order  that  the  truth  of 
one  God  should  enter  the  human  mind,  that  doubt  must 
be  removed  when  one  considers  the  persistent  tendency  of 
our  thought  to  division,  as  that  tendency  has  been  mani- 
fested in  Mental  Philosophy. 

Precisely  as  men  reasoned,  if  indeed  the  term  "reason" 
can  be  employed  in  such  a  connection,  in  creating  their 
separate  divinities,  so  they  have  reasoned  in  imagining 
separate  mental  faculties. 

They  observed  the  members  and  organs  of  their  bodies, 
and  saw  that  each  one  of  these  had  a  separate  and  distinct 
office  to  perform,  which  it  was  expressly  fitted  for  perform- 
ing ;  as,  for  example,  the  eyes  for  seeing,  and  the  limbs 
for  walking.  From  such  observations,  men  were  led  to 
conceive  of  their  minds,  as  being  also  composed  of  mem- 
bers, or  organs,  each  of  which  was  expressly  adapted 
to  the  performance  of  separate  and  distinct  functions. 
These  several  mental  operations  were  arranged  in  classes, 
or  divisions,  without  much  regard  to  the  unity  that  com- 
prehends them,  and  a  member  or  faculty  of  the  mind 
was  imagined,  adapted  to  perform  each  one  of  these 
classes  of  operations.  So  these  imaginary  faculties  re- 
ceive from  the  philosopher's,  just  as  the  divinities  did  from 
the  poet's  pen,  their  "  names  and  habitations." 

The  description  and  classification  of  these  imaginary 
faculties,  and  the  definition  of  the  boundaries  allotted  to 
each  one,  or  of  its  especial  function,  is  called  Mental  Phi- 
losophy. 

In  this  operation  of  cutting  up  the  mind,  a  difficulty 
was  encountered  when  the  dissectors  came  to  the  acts  of 


THE  UNITY  OF  THE  MIND.  55 

rejoicing  and  sorrowing,  of  loving  and  hating,  and  of 
speaking  or  acting  truly  or  falsely.  It  was  evident  that 
these  must  be  the  acts  of  the  spirit  in  its  unity.  No 
ingenuity  could  contrive  separate  members  to  which  the 
performance  of  these  acts  could  be  committed. 

The  difficulty  was  met  after  the  heroic  or  Alexandrine 
fashion.  What  were  regarded  as  the  moral  and  emotional 
parts  of  our  nature  were  denied  the  possession  of  facul- 
ties. Moreover,  being  destitute  of  these  appendages,  it 
was  obvious  to  the  philosophic  mind  that  this  supposed 
separate  department  of  our  spiritual  being  was  not  en- 
titled to  scientific  consideration,  in  any  such  sense  as 
that  in  which  this  consideration  was  bestowed  on  the 
intellect,  which  was  held  to  be  blest  with  the  exclusive 
possession  of  faculties. 

Philosophers,  essentially  repeating  one  another,  have 
been  blind  to  the  fact  that,  in  assuming  the  reality  of  this 
artificial  and  wholly  imaginary  system,  they  have  ignored 
the  supreme  element  of  spiritual  existence,  and  the  high- 
est form  of  activity  in  their  own  nature,  in  a  degree  that 
is  fatal  to  any  conception  of  truth  in  its  unity,  or  to  the 
conception  of  the  real  nature  of  truth  ;  which,  we  shall  see, 
requires  for  its  apprehension  every  mode  of  activity  of 
which  our  spirits  are  capable. 

Now,  it  is  submitted  that  it  is  time  that  all  this  work  of 
imagination  should  follow  the  classical  deities,  which,  in 
the  conception  of  their  adorers,  were  once  so  real  that 
they  could  not  be  spoken  against,  but  which  have  not 
now  a  worshipper ;  and  that  the  recognition  of  the 
supreme  truth  of  one  God  should  be  supplemented  by 
the  recognition  of  the  truth  of  the  unity  of  the  human 
mind. 

The  importance  of  the  latter  truth,  and  the  necessity 
for  its  recognition,  if  any  progress  is  to  be  made  in  the 


56  THE  UNITY  OF  THE  MIND. 

apprehension  of  spiritual  realities,  will  become  abundantly 
evident  in  the  course  of  this  discussion.  Moreover,  it 
will  be  seen  that  practical  consequences  of  a  most  serious 
and  injurious  nature  follow  from  this  doctrine  of  divisions 
of  the  mind,  a  doctrine  which  has  been  universally  ac- 
cepted, as  if  these  divisions  really  existed,  instead  of  be- 
ing imaginary  parts  of  the  spirit  of  man,  which  in  reality 
is  indivisible.  The  artificial  and  mistaken  habit  of 
thought  which  has  thus  been  engendered  affects  disas- 
trously both  our  systems  of  education  and  our  religious 
conceptions. 

It  is  hoped  that  this  exposition  of  the  unity  of  the 
mind,  with  the  applications  of  it  which  will  be  presented, 
may  assist  in  rendering  this  great  truth  a  familiar  one. 


MECHANICAL  SCIENCE  AND  RATIONALISM. 


WE  have  now  reached  a  position  from  which  we  may 
observe  more  closely  the  reason  or  ground  of  the  health- 
ful influence  that  mechanical  science  is  adapted  to  exert 
on  thought,  in  its  higher  or  spiritual  sphere. 

In  the  progress  of  mental  development,  and  of  reaction 
from  a  state  of  spiritual  bondage,  it  became,  necessary 
that  mankind  should  pass  through  a  period,  in  which,  in 
the  case  of  many  minds,  this  reaction  would  take  the  form 
of  rebellion  against  all  modes  whatever  of  what  appeared 
to  be  spiritual  domination.  In  such  a  period  the  tendency 
would  appear  to  assert  the  ability  of  the  mind  itself  to 
ascertain  the  truth,  in  all  those  forms  of  it  which  are  not 
obviously  the  subjects  of  empirical  determination.  It 
was  unavoidable  that  the  door  should  thus  be  thrown 
open  to  every  extravagance  of  independent  and  unguided 
thought. 

The  various  sects  of  Protestant  Christians  became  alive 
to  the  danger,  and  they  endeavored,  according  to  the 
light  of  the  age,  to  fix,  and  really  though  not  purposely  to 
limit  and  confine,  religious  belief.  This  they  did,  for  the 
most  part,  by  substituting,  in  place  of  the  rejected  dog- 
mas of  the  Roman  Church,  written  creeds  or  interpreta- 
tions of  Scripture,  that  derived  their  authority  from  the 
consent  of  those  who  were  to  be  governed  by  them ; 
while  not  the  least  rigid  or  enduring  was  the  unwritten 

57 


58  MECHANICAL  SCIENCE  AND  RATIONALISM. 

creed  of  those  whose  boast  it  has  been  that  they  have  no 
creed.  These  creeds  went  far  beyond  the  single  require- 
ment of  Christianity,  which  is  the  union  of  man  with 
Christ,  or  the  attainment  by  man  of  the  spirit  of  Christ, 
and  in  various  degrees  they  demanded  the  acceptance  of 
dogmas  which  can  only  be  termed  the  inventions  of  men. 

From  that  period  to  the  present  there  has  appeared  in 
all  Protestant  denominations  of  Christians  a  continual 
spiritual  growth  or  development,  and  an  increased  depth 
of  spiritual  perception.  The  religious  mind  has  steadily 
tended  towards  emancipation  from  bondage  to  the  letter 
that  killeth, — to  that  true  freedom  which  is  the  fruit  of 
the  life-giving  spirit. 

While  Christian  sects  were  insisting  upon  the  reception 
of  every  proposition  in  their  dogmatic  theologies,  under 
the  penalty  of  eternal  damnation,  free-thinkers  were 
indulging  in  the  extravagant  defiances  of  English  deism 
and  French  atheism.  The  present  age  shows,  on  both 
sides,  a  tendency  to  the  abandonment  of  these  extreme 
positions,  and  a  softening  of  the  asperities  by  which  they 
were  marked.  While  conflicting  views  in  great  number 
are  still  held,  there  is  to  be  observed  a  growing  neglect, 
on  the  one  hand,  of  the  more  obviously  human  element  in 
religious  dogmas,  and  on  the  other  hand,  of  the  extreme 
denials  that  were  contained  in  the  old  forms  of  infidelity. 

In  this  progress  the  Christian  sees,  truly  enough,  the 
operation  of  the  Spirit  of  God.  But  God  works  through 
means  which  are  adapted  to  bring  about  the  results 
observed.  The  dependence  of  metaphysical  knowledge 
upon  physical  science  has  been  uniformly  recognized.  In 
the  growth  of  physical  science,  and  especially  in  the 
growth  of  mechanical  science,  is  to  be  found  the  funda- 
mental and  efficient  cause  of  the  enlargement  of  thought, 
which  has  only  just  begun,  and  to  which  there  can  be  no 


MECHANICAL  SCIENCE  AND  RATIONALISM.  59 

limit.  This  advance  has  already  rendered  impossible  to 
enlightened  minds  the  narrow  conceptions  which  once 
were  universal,  and  is  gradually  enabling  mankind  to  dis- 
tinguish with  certainty  between  the  human  and  the  divine. 

Modern  free  thought  is  seen  generally  to  take  on  some 
one  of  the  forms  of  what  is  known  as  rationalism.  In  one 
sense  rationalism  admits  of  a  definition.  It  claims  for  the 
unaided  human  reason  absolute  authority  in  matters  of 
faith.  It  declares  that  reason  must  be  the  final  arbiter 
respecting  spiritual  belief.  When,  however,  we  come  to 
ask,  what  has  the  reason  established  as  entitled  to  belief? 
the  number  of  different  answers  that  we  get  to  this  ques- 
tion is  limited  only  by  the  number  of  rationalists.  No 
two  of  these  will  be  found  to  agree  in  every  shade  of 
their  belief,  unless  we  admit  agreement  among  the  agnos- 
tics, who  deny  that  reason  has  shown  any  thing  to  be 
entitled  to  belief. 

Rationalists  are  found  scattered  throughout  the  wilder- 
ness of  free  thought.  Every  rationalist  believes  that 
which  seems  right  in  his  own  eyes.  In  rationalism  we 
witness  the  fullest  development  of  the  disposition  to  look, 
as  far  as  possible,  within  one's  self  for  the  criterion  of 
truth. 

Rationalistic  speculation  starts  from  the  assertion  of  the 
so-called  psychological  principle,  that  what  it  terms  the 
reason  intuitively  perceives  universal  and  necessary  truth. 
From  these  truths  it  passes,  by  what  it  asserts  to  be  logi- 
cal processes  of  thought,  to  every  caprice  and  conceit 
that  speculation  has  thus  far  been  able  to  imagine  ;  these 
speculations,  by  a  curious  law,  becoming  continually  more 
vague,  indefinite,  and  dreamy. 

The  rationalistic  schools  of  thought  have  exerted  and 
still  exert  a  subtle  and  widespread  influence.  This  influ- 
ence is  wholly  pernicious.  Under  it  the  mind  becomes 


60  MECHANICAL  SCIENCE  AND  RA  TIONALISM. 

lost  in  endless  mazes  of  error.  The  more  brilliant  the 
will  o'  the  wisp  that  allures  into  the  vagaries  of  ration- 
alism, the  more  hopeless  the  entanglement  becomes. 
Confidence  in  the  conclusions  of  the  unaided  reason  is  a 
delusion  that  is  all  the  more  fascinating  and  dangerous, 
because  it  flatters  the  pride  of  intellect,  which,  like  "  the 
fatal  gift  of  beauty"  often  turns  the  heads  of  its  posses- 
sors to  their  ruin. 

Mechanical  science  possesses  the  power  to  expose  the 
error  that  is  contained  in  the  fundamental  assumptions  of 
rationalism.  This  science  shows  the  falsity  of  the  claims : 
that  the  unaided  human  reason  is  able  to  decide  correctly, 
and  has  therefore  the  right  to  decide,  in  matters  of  faith  ; 
that  it  is  the  natural  and  proper  arbiter  with  respect  to 
spiritual  belief ;  and,  finally,  that  it  intuitively  perceives 
all  universal  and  necessary  truth.  Mechanical  science 
assumes,  equally  with  rationalism,  that  all  truth  is  ad- 
dressed to  the  mind,  and  that  nothing  can  be  known 
to  be  a  truth,  unless  it  is  recognized  as  such,  and  adjudged 
to  be  such,  by  the  mind  in  its  judicial  activity.  But  it 
discovers  the  vital  error  in  the  assumptions  of  rationalism 
to  consist  in  this,  that  this  philosophy  assumes  respecting 
the  human  mind  that  which  can  be  predicated  only  of  a 
complete,  a  perfect,  or,  in  other  words,  of  the  Infinite  Mind. 
It  shows,  by  a  conclusive  analogy,  that  only  the  all-com- 
prehending mind  can  be  entitled  to  rely  upon  its  own 
intuitive  perception  of  truth,  in  any  of  its  forms,  whether 
universal  or  particular.  It  shows  that  the  finite  mind, 
while  capable  of  being  developed,  possibly  to  the  com- 
prehension of  any  truth  whatever,  cannot  itself  distinguish 
between  truth  and  error,  except  just  in  the  degree  that  it 
has  been  taught,  but  must  rely  entirely  on  the  instruction 
that  it  receives  from  the  Infinite  Mind;  and  this  is  revela- 
tion. 


MECHANICAL  SCIENCE  AND  RATIONALISM.  6 1 

This  lesson,  of  the  absurdity  of  the  reliance  of  a  finite 
mind  on  its  own  unaided  judgment,  of  our  complete 
dependence  on  revelation,  and  of  the  closeness  of  our 
relation  to  the  Infinite  Source  and  Revealer  of  truth,  is 
taught  by  mechanical  science  in  such  a  conclusive  manner, 
and  its  instruction  goes  so  completely  to  the  root  of  the 
matter,  that  it  becomes  of  the  first  importance  that  this 
instruction  shall  be  distinctly  apprehended  and  its  force 
be  realized. 

The  general  fact  that  is  disclosed  by  mechanical  science, 
and  that  constitutes  the  teaching  of  that  science  on  this 
point,  has  been  pretty  fully  presented,  in  preceding 
papers,  and  the  reader  may  be  presumed  to  have  become 
somewhat  familiar  with  it.  Its  importance  requires,  how- 
ever, that  it  shall  be  stated  again  with  emphasis.  In 
mechanics,  every  step  that  is  taken  upon  untrodden 
ground  is  sure  to  be  taken,  in  some  degree  at  least,  in  a 
wrong  direction,  and  the  mind  possesses  within  itself  no 
power  to  correct  the  error,  nor  even  to  determine  whether 
or  not  the  step  is  an  error. 

Notions  of  a  novel  character,  which,  from  all  the 
thought  that  can  be  given  to  them,  even  by  experienced 
persons,  seem  most  certain  to  be  correct,  turn  out  in  the 
large  majority  of  cases  to  be  delusions.  The  experience  of 
inventors  in  every  branch  of  mechanics,  as  well  as  that  of 
explorers  in  those  branches  of  physics  that  are  not  strictly 
mechanical,  will  confirm  this  statement.  The  most  com- 
prehensive knowledge  fails  when  it  finds  itself  confronted 
by  a  single  unfamiliar  feature.  The  tyro  is  always  con- 
fident, but  the  utmost  that  the  man  of  experience  will 
permit  himself  to  affirm  respecting  a  new  device  or  new 
operation,  even  in  those  rare  cases  in  which  he  can  detect 
nothing  which  is  at  variance  with  truth  already  estab- 
lished, is,  that  it  seems  to  be  worth  trying. 


62  MECHANICAL  SCIENCE  AND  RA  TIONALISM. 

One  of  the  greatest  of  living  inventors  once  said  to  me : 
"  There  can't  be  any  more  mistakes,  I  have  made  them 
all."  Professor  Tyndall  relates  that,  in  entering  upon  his 
investigations  respecting  the  power  of  the  atmosphere  to 
arrest  radiant  heat,  he  assumed  that  the  aqueous  vapor 
contained  in  the  atmosphere,  being  so  minute  a  propor- 
tion of  the  whole,  at  the  most  only  about  one  quarter 
of  one  per  cent.,  might  be  disregarded.  He  was  per- 
plexed by  the  varying  character  of  the  results  obtained, 
until  he  began  to  suspect  that  the  varying  degrees  of 
humidity  of  the  atmosphere  might  have  something  to  do 
with  these  results.  The  final  outcome  of  his  exhaustive 
researches,  as  is  well  known,  was  the  discovery  of  the  im- 
portant fact,  that  dry  air  has  almost  no  power  to  arrest 
radiant  heat,  and  that  the  aqueous  vapor  contained  in  the 
atmosphere,  which  for  a  long  time  he  could  not  see  that 
he  should  pay  any  attention  to,  affords  the  only  protec- 
tion to  the  earth,  to  prevent  the  immediate  loss,  by  radia- 
tion into  space,  of  the  heat  received  from  the  sun. 

Such  candor  as  is  exhibited  in  these  confessions  marks 
the  true  seer  into  nature.  Through  such  minds  only  can 
physical  truth  be  revealed  to  men.  And  it  is  only  by 
effort  on  the  part  of  such  men,  sincere,  patient,  and  per- 
severing in  a  degree  beyond  ordinary  comprehension, 
that  the  clouds  and  darkness  which  are  round  about 
every  form  of  physical  truth  can  be  penetrated. 

Thus  that  science  in  which  the  conclusions  of  the 
unaided  human  reason  are  brought  to  practical  tests,  and 
its  unreliability  is  made  apparent  to  the  gaze  of  all  men, 
renders  to  philosophy  the  important  service  of  showing 
the  complete  dependence  of  the  human  mind  on  revela- 
tion for  its  knowledge  of  truth.  It  is  certain  that  in 
mechanics  all  attempts  to  ascertain  truth  by  mere  reason- 
ing infallibly  lead  men  astray.  Active  minds  create 


MECHANICAL  SCIENCE  AND  RA  TIONALISM.  63 

legions  of  phantoms,  all  of  which  need,  not  to  be  dis- 
cussed and  argued  about,  but  to  be  mercilessly  exposed. 
In  mechanics  we  see  clearly  enough,  that  the  employment 
of  "  the  unaided  human  reason  "  is  merely  reasoning,  or 
pretending  to  do  so,  without  any  properly  established 
data,  which  here  at  least  would  obviously  be  the  work  of 
fools. 

But,  it  will  be  asked,  and  the  question  is  a  natural  one, 
does  not  the  reason  or  the  understanding  itself  perform 
all  this  work  of  invention  and  discovery? — does  it  not 
conceive,  direct,  and  supervise  all  experiment  and  observa- 
tion, and  itself  determine  the  certainty  or  the  inconclu- 
siveness  of  the  results?  The  answer  to  this  question  is, 
that  the  mind  certainly  does  all  this,  but  that  this  is  the 
necessary  mode  in  which  man  cooperates  in  receiving 
these  revelations.  The  subject  of  our  necessary  coopera- 
tion in  the  revelation  of  truth  will  become  prominent  in 
this  discussion.  When  the  nature  of  this  cooperation  on 
our  part  is  apprehended,  it  will  be  seen  to  furnish  the 
answer  to  the  above  question.  But  we  may  observe  here, 
that  obviously  these  revelations  could  not  be  made  to  man 
at  all  if  he  did  not  possess  the  intelligence  to  receive 
them,  they  cannot  be  made  to  him  any  further  than  his 
receptive  intelligence  has  been  developed,  and  we  cannot 
conceive  any  other  method  or  means  so  well  adapted  for 
their  effectual  revelation  to  him  as  is  just  that  mental 
activity  on  his  part  which  he  is  called  upon  to  put  forth. 
Attention  must  not  be  diverted  from  the  fact,  that  in 
physics,  where  only  an  obvious  test  can  be  applied  to 
them,  our  mental  speculations  need  to  have  their  errors 
corrected  at  every  step. 

We  must  stop  here,  to  rid  our  minds  of  that  creation  of 
our  imagination,  "  the  reason."  In  popular  conception,  a 
glamour  surrounds  this  "  shape  that  shape  has  none " 


64  MECHANICAL  SCIENCE  AND  RA  TIONALISM. 

that  seems  to  render  correct  reasoning  extremely  difficult. 
When,  however,  we  are  able  to  see  clearly  that  the  only 
reality  that  can  be  expressed  by  this  term  is  the  mental 
process,  by  which  the  spirit  of  man,  in  its  unity,  discusses 
the  appearances  which  are  given  in  consciousness,  then 
the  first  position  has  been  gained.  It  is  important  that 
we  should  see  that  "  the  reason  "  is,  itself,  one  of  those 
unwarranted  conceptions  that  the  spirit,  in  its  form-con-  • 
structing  activity,  is  continually  creating.  When  we  are 
fairly  rid  of  this  conception,  and  are  able  instead  of  it  to 
consider  the  act  of  reasoning,  as  above  defined,  then  it  be- 
comes evident  that  the  subject-matter  of  reasoning  must 
first  be  given,  and  the  distinction  between  reasoning  and 
observing  becomes  an  obvious  one. 

Mechanical  science  guides  the  feet  in  the  path  of  true 
philosophy,  by  maintaining,  in  its  own  sphere,  this  funda- 
mental distinction  between  reasoning  and  observing,  and 
by  insisting  on  the  supreme  importance  of  experiment 
and  observation,  which  are  man's  cooperative  acts  in  re- 
ceiving the  revelation  of  mechanical  truth. 

The  act  of  observing,  including  the  verification  of  the 
reality  and  the  truth  of  the  image  formed  in  conscious- 
ness, is  an  exceedingly  complex  act.  It  calls  into  exercise 
every  form  of  our  spiritual  activity,  and  it  manifests  all 
the  qualities  which  in  their  aggregate  constitute  character. 
It  is  not  proposed  to  present  here  an  analysis  of  this  act, 
but  only  to  point  out  that  the  appeal  for  the  exposure  of 
the  falsity,  or  the  verification  of  the  truth,  of  the  mental 
conception,  must  always  be  made  to  a  criterion  existing 
wholly  outside  the  mind  itself. 

It  is  interesting  to  consider  the  light  that  is  thrown  by 
mathematics  upon  this  distinction  between  observing  and 
reasoning.  The  processes  of  mathematical  reasoning  are 
certain.  They  are  of  a  nature  that  excludes  doubt.  But 


MECHANICAL  SCIENCE  AND  RA  TIONALISM.  65 

in  the  physical  applications  of  mathematics,  that  is,  in  the 
application  of  mathematical  reasoning  to  any  purpose 
whatever,  the  correctness  of  the  result  depends  entirely 
upon  the  correctness  and  the  sufficiency  of  the  data,  and 
these  data  mathematics  does  not  provide,  nor  does  it 
primarily  contribute  in  the  least  degree  to  their  provision. 

The  fault  is  not  an  uncommon  one  among  mathemati- 
cians of  neglecting  proper  verification  of  their  data,  or 
proper  assurance  that  all  essential  data  have  been  given 
them.  The  mathematical  mind,  just  in  the  degree  that  it 
is  exclusively  mathematical,  seems  inclined  to  be  wrapped 
up  in  its  processes,  and  to  be  satisfied  with  their  certainty, 
so  as  to  be  incapable  of  appreciating  the  anxious  observa- 
tion that  must  be  exercised  in  ascertaining  the  data  on 
which  its  calculations  are  to  be  based.  In  this  respect,  a 
similarity  appears  between  mathematicians  and  rational- 
ists, that  is  precisely  what  one  would  expect. 

I  once  witnessed  an  incident  that  illustrates  the  uncer- 
tainty which  attends  all  physical  applications  of  mathe- 
matics, in  cases  where  the  necessary  data  have  not  been 
well  established.  At  a  meeting  of  the  American  Associa- 
tion for  the  Advancement  of  Science,  held  in  the  city 
of  Albany  some  twenty-five  years  ago,  in  the  Physical 
Section,  presided  over  by  Professor  Henry,  a  paper  on 
a  subject  in  mixed  mathematics  was  presented  by  Pro- 
fessor Pierce,  of  Harvard.  When  the  reading  of  the 
paper  had  been  concluded,  Professor  Alexander,  of  Prince- 
ton, arose  and  requested  that  the  discussion  of  it  might 
be  postponed  till  the  next  day,  as  he  expected  then 
to  present  a  paper  on  the  same  subject,  in  which,  by  a 
different  course  of  reasoning,  he  had  arrived  at  precisely 
the  opposite  conclusion.  Some  different  elements  had  en- 
tered into  the  problem,  as  it  had  been  attacked  by  each  of 
these  eminent  mathematicians. 


66  MECHANICAL  SCIENCE  AND  RA  TIONALISM. 

The  discovery  of  the  planet  Neptune  is  often  cited  as  a 
prominent  and  striking  instance  of  the  ascertaining  of  a 
fact  by  the  mere  exercise  of  the  reasoning  powers,  through 
a  purely  mathematical  process.  No  event  has  ever  been 
more  misapprehended,  for  there  is  none  that  places  the 
distinction  between  observation  and  reasoning  in  a  stronger 
light,  or  that  exhibits  in  a  more  remarkable  manner  the  de- 
pendence of  reasoning  upon  careful  and  exact  observation 
for  the  correctness  of  its  results. 

The  power  of  the  analysis  that  could  locate  the  unseen 
planet,  and  the  strength  with  which  this  mighty  weapon 
was  wielded  by  the  young  English  and  French  mathemav 
ticians,  whose  names  are  forever  associated  with  this  dis- 
covery, command  the  admiration  of  men.  The  basis  on 
which  this  analysis  proceeded  was,  the  accumulating  ir- 
regularities in  the  orbit  of  the  planet  Uranus.  This  orbit 
had  been  computed,  as  it  would  be  determined  by  the  in- 
fluence of  all  known  attractions  ;  but,  to  the  surprise  of 
astronomers,  Uranus  did  not  move  in  this  orbit.  The  de- 
gree of  its  departure  from  it  was  ascertained  by  observa- 
tion, and  this  obviously  could  not  be  learned  in  any  other 
way.  If  these  observations  had  not  been  exact,  or  if  they 
had  been  insufficient,  in  either  case  the  mathematicians 
would  have  been  misled,  the  result  reached  by  the  mathe- 
matical process  would  have  been  wrong,  the  planet  would 
have  been  looked  for  in  the  wrong  place,  and  would  not 
have  been  found.  .. 

But  it  has  been  reserved  for  mechanical  science  to  afford 
the  most  convincing  demonstration  both  of  the  dependence 
of  reasoning  upon  data  otherwise  ascertained,  and  of  the 
tendency  to  error  in  all  mental  processes,  which  tendency 
can  be  shown  and  corrected  only  by  observation  and  ex- 
periment. 

This  peculiar  power  of  mechanical  science  has  already 


MECHANICAL  SCIENCE  AND  RA  TIONALISM.  67 

been  abundantly  shown.  We  may,  however,  in  conclu- 
sion, refer  to  the  application  of  mathematical  reasoning  to 
mechanics.  Engineers  know  very  well  that  it  will  not  do, 
in  practice,  to  conform  to  any  deductions  of  mathematics, 
unless  these  deductions  have  been  founded  on  exhaustive 
experiments.  All  such  deductions  made  in  disregard  of 
this  requirement,  and  it  may  be  added  that  the  name  of 
these  is  legion,  are  presumably  worthless.  Some  factor  is 
certain  to  be  omitted ;  some  requirement,  often  of  great 
consequence,  is  sure  to  be  under-estimated,  or  even 
entirely  overlooked.  The  result  of  every  experiment  is 
always  in  some  respect  a  surprise.  Something  is  revealed 
that  was  not  anticipated.  The  great  structure  of  mechani- 
cal science  has  been  reared  by  mathematical  investigation, 
upon  the  foundation  of  experiment ;  or,  to  change  the 
figure,  experiment  has  been  the  plumb  and  the  level  and 
the  square,  the  application  of  which  to  this  structure  has 
been  necessary  at  every  point  in  its  rise. 

In  mechanics  we  are  confronted  by  two  facts,  which  are 
as  familiar  as  any  facts  of  human  experience  can  be.  The 
first  of  these  facts  is,  that,  in  the  search  after  physical 
truth,  the  mind  is,  to  the  last  degree,  fallible,  and  liable 
to  error.  Where,  out  of  all  possible  images  that  we  can 
form  in  consciousness,  there  can  be  only  one  that  corre- 
sponds with  the  reality,  we  are  equally  liable,  instead  of 
this,  to  form  any  one  of  the  endless  number  of  images 
that  would  represent  nothing,  and  to  accept  this  phantom 
of  our  brain  as  representing  a  reality.  We  have  within 
ourselves  no  power  to  distinguish  the  true  from  the  false. 
In  advancing  even  one  step  beyond  what  is  already  estab- 
lished and  familiar,  we  find  ourselves  in  absolute  need  of 
a  guide,  who  will  arrest  our  tendency  to  error,  and  will  set 
our  feet  in  the  right  path  on  solid  ground. 

The  second  fact  is  that  this  infallible  guide  has  appeared, 


68  MECHANICAL  SCIENCE  AND  RA  TIONALISM. 

surrounding  man  on  every  side,  precisely  adapted  to  this 
service,  demanding  his  recognition,  and  his  absolute  sub- 
mission to  its  control  and  guidance  ;  and  that  it  is  by  the 
aid  of  this  guide  that  all  progress  in  physical  knowledge 
has  been  made. 

It  is  the  familiar  teaching  of  mechanical  science,  re- 
specting the  means  by  which  we  have  arrived  at  our  pres- 
ent knowledge  of  physical  truth,  and  by  which  all  further 
knowledge  of  this  nature  is  to  be  attained,  that  this  knowl- 
edge is  imparted  to  us,  and  verified  to  us,  wholly  from 
without,  beyond,  and  above  ourselves. 

Now,  this  is  a  fact  of  supreme  consequence,  not  only  in 
itself,  but  still  more  on  account  of  the  deductions  which 
appear  naturally,  and  indeed  necessarily,  to  be  drawn  from 
it.  For  there  seems  to  be  no  way  of  escape  from  the  con- 
clusion, that  this  truth,  which  is  so  certain  with  respect  to 
the  facts  of  mechanical  science,  and,  it  should  be  added,  of 
all  science  as  well,  must  in  reality  be  a  universal  truth,  of 
which  these  practical  illustrations  or  applications  are,  to 
our  present  apprehension,  merely  the  most  obvious  and 
unmistakable  expression. 

The  following  propositions  seem  to  be  self-evident : 

First. — If  the  unaided  human  mind  cannot  be  relied 
upon  for  the  ascertainment  of  any  physical  truth,  this  is  a 
direct  intimation  that  we  are  not  to  rely  upon  it  for  the 
ascertainment  of  any  other  form  of  truth.  If,  as  is  obvi- 
ously the  case,  our  mental  powers  are  not  given  us  to  be 
employed  as  the  means  for  arriving,  by  any  mere  unguided 
exercise  of  them,  at  the  knowledge  of  physical  truth,  we 
have  no  right  to  rely  upon  their  unaided  power  or  activity 
as  the  means  of  arriving  at  higher  forms  of  truth.  If  at 
every  step  toward  physical  knowledge  we  need  an  infal- 
lible guide,  it  is  a  reasonable  presumption  that  we  re- 
quire such  a  guide  everywhere. 


MECHANICAL  SCIENCE  AND  RA  TIONALISM.  69 

Second. — If  such  a  guide  is  found  to  have  been  provided 
here,  it  would  be  unreasonable  to  suppose  that  mankind 
have  been  left  helpless  in  any  other  respect.  On  the  con- 
trary, the  presumption  is  exceedingly  strong,  that  if,  in  his 
search  after  physical  truth,  man  finds  at  his  hand  the  very 
aid  he  needs,  without  which  he  must  have  remained  in 
helpless  ignorance,  in  a  state  in  which  every  creation  of 
his  imagination  would  appear  to  him  as  a  reality,  but  by 
the  employment  of  which  he  may  hope  to  reach  the 
heights  of  physical  knowledge,  so  he  must  be  able,  if  he 
will,  to  find  aid  equally  available  and  equally  efficient  as 
well  as  indispensable,  in  his  efforts  to  reach  the  more  ele- 
vated heights  of  spiritual  truth. 

Finally. — If  this  guide  to  physical  truth  can  be  of  no 
service  to  man,  except  as  he  seeks  for  it,  voluntarily  em- 
ploys it,  recognizes  its  infallible  nature,  holds  his  con- 
structive and  his  reasoning  powers  entirely  subordinate  to 
it,  yea,  humbles  and  prostrates  himself  before  it,  it  is  a 
reasonable  conclusion  that  he  must  deal  in  precisely  the 
same  manner  with  the  guide  that  shall  lead  him  to  the 
knowledge  of  any  truth  whatever. 

Such  a  unity  pervades  all  truth,  physical  and  spiritual, 
and  this  unity  is  so  obvious  to  us,  that  the  force  of  this 
argument  from  analogy  cannot  be  either  disregarded  or 
resisted.  The  criterion  of  all  truth,  spiritual  as  well  as 
physical,  to  which  the  appeal  must  always  be  made,  is  to 
be  found  only  at  its  source,  and  the  universal  guide  to 
it  is  revelation. 

The  various  forms  of  speculative  error  which  are 
grouped  under  the  general  name  of  rationalism  are  best 
met  by  the  assertion  of  the  great  and  comprehensive 
truth,  that  ALL  knowledge  is  imparted  to  the  human 
mind  by  revelation.  For  the  demonstration  of  this  truth 
mankind  will  primarily  be  indebted  to  mechanical  science. 


REVELATION. 


IN  the  preceding  paper  I  have  endeavored  to  point  out 
some  of  the  analogies  afforded  by  mechanical  science, 
which  seem  to  lead  to  the  conclusion  that  all  truth  must 
be  communicated  to  the  human  mind  from  the  Infinite 
Mind — that  is,  by  revelation.  In  this  and  subsequent 
papers  I  shall  present  some  considerations  which  tend 
directly  to  confirm  this  conclusion. 

However  inclined  the  reader  may  now  be  to  question 
this  proposition,  in  the  general  form  in  which  it  is  stated, 
I  hope,  if  he  will  accompany  me  in  my  attempt  to  present 
the  reasons  on  which  the  proposition  is  rested,  he  will  in 
the  end  be  prepared  to  give  to  it  his  assent.  If  it  be  the 
fact  that  we  cannot  arrive  at  the  knowledge  of  any  truth, 
except  as  this  knowledge  is  thus  imparted  to  us,  then, 
clearly,  it  is  of  the  first  importance  that  this  fact  should 
be  universally  recognized. 

Our  minds  must  first  be  disabused  of  an  unfavorable 
prepossession.  The  term  "  revelation  "  has  been  used  in 
a  restricted  sense.  It  has  been  customary  to  employ  this 
term  to  express  only  the  verbal  mode  in  which  the  highest 
of  all  forms  of  truth  has  been  communicated  to  man;  and 
which  particular  form  of  truth  it  is  obvious  could  not  have 
been  imparted  to  him  in  any  other  way. 

It  is  claimed  that  this  limitation  is  unwarranted,  and 
also  that  it  is  unfortunate,  in  that  it  has  served  to  hide 

70 


REVELATION.  7 1 

the  essential  unity  of  all  truth,  by  assuming  a  radical  dis- 
tinction between  the  modes  in  which  the  knowledge  of  its 
different  forms  or  manifestations  is  conveyed  to  us  ;  a  dis- 
tinction that  in  reality  has  no  existence.  All  forms  of 
truth  proceed  from  one  source,  and  are  intimately  related 
to  each  other,  and  are  associated  with  each  other  in  their 
relations  to  man.  The  essential  unity  between  physical 
and  spiritual  truth  will  form  the  subject  of  a  separate 
paper.  At  present  we  will  only  observe,  that  this  unity 
enables  the  latter  class  of  truths  to  be  presented  under 
the  forms  of  the  former  class ;  that  both  alike  involve 
deep  mysteries ;  that  truths  of  either  class  are  capable 
of  being  apprehended  only  by  the  humble  and  teachable 
spirit  which  has  been  prepared  for  their  reception ;  and 
that,  within  the  limited  extent  to  which  the  knowledge 
of  either  physical  or  spiritual  truths  is  possible  for  us, 
there  are  degrees  in  the  apprehension  of  either,  which  are 
proportionate  to  the  fitness  of  the  mind  to  receive  the 
truth,  and  to  the  earnestness  of  the  search  for  it.  These 
close  analogies  or  likenesses  point  clearly  to  a  common 
source,  from  which  the  knowledge  of  both  these  forms  of 
truth  is  imparted  to  us.  If  this  indication  be  correct,  then 
the  term  "  revelation  "  ought  to  be  employed  in  a  general, 
or  rather  in  a  universal,  sense. 

In  point  of  fact,  all  truths  are  equally  revealed  to  men, 
only  the  mode  of  revelation  differs,  as  the  nature  of  each 
truth  requires.  We  shall  find  that  different  classes  of 
truths  are  revealed  to  us  in  different  ways,  as  is  made 
necessary  by  their  varied  nature.  Each  one  of  the  several 
modes  of  revelation  will  be  seen  to  be  the  only  way  in 
which,  as  we  are  constituted,  the  particular  class  of  truths 
which  is  revealed  to  us  in  that  way  could  be  made  known 
to  us. 

Attention  is  first  invited  to  some  general  considerations 


72  RE  VELA  TION. 

which  serve  to  indicate  very  clearly  that  all  truth  must  be 
directly  revealed  to  man. 

With  respect  to  mechanical  truth,  the  correctness  of 
this  •  proposition  has  been  abundantly  shown.  But  a 
general  survey  of  the  history  of  human  thought  will  dis- 
cover evidence  of  its  universal  character.  It  will  be  ob- 
served that,  just  as  the  unguided  imagination  becomes 
filled  with  false  mechanical  conceptions,  in  precisely  the 
same  manner  out  of  the  unguided  activity  of  the  mind 
there  have  proceeded  all  false  religions,  all  false  morality, 
and  all  false  philosophy,  of  whatever  form. 

Of  this  an  instructive  example  is  afforded  in  the  Hindoo 
cosmogony.  This  example  is  selected,  not  for  its  especial 
absurdity,  but  because  our  education  has  been  of  a  nature 
to  make  us  more  alive  to  its  absurdity  than  we  can  be 
to  the  equal  absurdity  of  beliefs  with  which  we  are  more 
familiar,  which  perhaps  we  ourselves  have  been  taught. 

All  perversions  of  both  physical  and  spiritual  truth 
have  sprung  from  within  the  human  spirit.  In  every  field 
of  thought  alike,  men  have  constructed  images  which 
represented  no  realities,  and  have  treated  these  vain  fan- 
cies as  if  they  were  true. 

Thus  all  experience  appears  to  confirm  the  deductions 
of  analogy.  The  liability  to  error,  the  need  of  a  guide, 
which  is  so  manifest  in  exploring  the  regions  of  physical 
truth,  is  equally  apparent  in  every  other  field  of  thought. 
In  all  alike,  whenever  the  mind  acts  independently  of 
direction  from  the  source  of  truth,  it  is  equally  liable  to 
fall  into  error.  We  are  able  to  affirm  that  this  tendency 
to  error  is  not  by  any  means  confined  to  mechanical 
truth,  but  is  a  universal  one,  and  its  invariable  presence 
in  the  former  relation,  which  experience  renders  so 
obvious,  merely  serves  to  open  our  eyes  to  its  universal 
existence.  Indeed,  in  the  light  that  is  shed  on  this  sub- 
ject from  all  these  sources,  we  seem  warranted  in  the  a 


RE  VELA  TION.  73 

priori  conclusion,  that  whatever  has  its  origin  in  the 
human  mind,  and  receives  its  development  from  the  un- 
guided  operation  of  that  mind  alone,  must  of  necessity 
be  false.  It  would  seem  as  if  there  could  be  no  escape 
from  the  conclusion  that  all  truth  must  come  to  us  from 
the  infinite;  that  an  intelligence  which  is  less  than  infinite 
can  attain  to  the  knowledge  of  any  truth  only  as  it  is 
taught.  The  distinction  which  has  been  universally  drawn 
between  what  man  discovers  and  what  God  reveals  then 
disappears.  God  reveals  every  thing. 

If  this  be  the  case,  we  are  shut  up  to  revelation. 
It  must  be  by  revelation  alone  that  we  can  receive  any 
certain  knowledge.  The  source  and  the  test  of  all  truth 
must  be  wholly  from  above  ourselves.  We  must  submit 
to  receive  every  thing  from  the  Almighty  hand. 

I  have  used  the  expression  "shut  up  to  revelation." 
This  may  convey  a  false  impression.  In  reality,  our  minds 
must  be  opened  to  revelation.  We  cannot  conceive  of  its 
abundance  or  its  variety.  Spiritual  as  well  as  physical 
revelation  fills  the  earth  and  the  heavens.  It  is  infinite. 
The  fulness  of  our  own  being  is  limited  only  by  the 
wideness  with  which  that  being  is  voluntarily  opened  to 
receive  the  universal  revelation. 

The  question  now  presents  itself :  In  what  manner  is 
this  revelation  made  to  us?  The  answer  to  this  question 
is  given  in  the  nature  of  things.  To  our  spiritual  being 
as  a  unit,  and  in  a  degree  that  is  limited  only  by  our 
capacity  to  receive,  every  revelation  of  physical  and  of 
spiritual  truth  is  made  to  the  same  consciousness  through 
appropriate  senses,  with  all  which  we  have  been  endowed 
for  the  obvious  purpose  of  receiving  these  revelations. 
This  truth  will,  I  think,  be  rendered  obvious,  if,  beginning 
at  the  lowest  form  of  revelation,  we  examine  its  various 
modes  somewhat  in  detail.  Such  an  examination  will  be 
attempted  in  succeeding  papers. 


THE  REVELATION  OF  OBJECTS  OF  SENSE. 


WE  begin  our  review  with  the  external  or  sensible 
creation.  This  is  certainly  revealed  to  us.  We  cannot 
form  in  our  minds  a  correct  preconception  of  any  thing. 
If.  in  any  case  we  permit  ourselves  to  form  a  preconcep- 
tion, this  vanishes  in  the  presence  of  the  reality.  The 
single  obvious  duty  of  every  original  inquirer  is,  to  form  a 
correct  image  in  the  mjnd  by  observation  of  the  reality, 
and  in  no  other  way.  We  are  endowed  with  a  variety  of 
physical  senses,  which  are  adapted  to  the  observation  of 
every  quality  of  external  objects,  and  which  will  convey 
to  the  mind  true  and,  so  far  as  they  go,  complete  ideas  of 
them.  We  thus  obtain  all  the  knowledge  that  we  need  to 
have,  and  all  that  we  were  evidently  intended  to  have, 
concerning  these  objects. 

We  should  observe  here  the  variety  of  our  senses.  One 
sense  alone  may  be  deceived — indeed  it  often  is  so.  But 
others  are  always  at  hand  to  detect  the  imposition.  I 
once  visited  Eton  Hall,  the  seat  of  the  Duke,  at  that  time 
the  Marquis,  of  Westminster.  On  being  admitted  to  the 
grand  entrance  hall,  the  appearance  of  magnificence  was 
very  impressive.  But  I  rapped  on  one  of  the  supposed 
marble  columns,  and  it  was  wood.  The  artist  had  done 
his  imitative  work  wonderfully  well;  it  deceived  the  eye, 
but  it  could  not  deceive  the  sense  of  touch  or  of  hearing. 

Universally,  we  find  ourselves  provided,  in  our  various 

74 


THE  REVELATION  OF  OBJECTS  OF  SENSE.  75 

senses,  with  the  means  for  verifying  the  reality  of  the 
objects  themselves,  as  distinguished  from  the  images  of 
them  that  are  formed  in  our  minds,  and  also  for  verifying 
the  correctness  of  these  images,  as  the  counterparts  of  the 
objects,  which  are  presented  through  our  senses  for  our 
mental  apprehension.  The  completeness  of  the  adapta- 
tion of  our  senses  to  both  these  functions,  and  the  manner 
in  which  one  sense  supplements  another,  and  all  combine 
to  give  to  the  mind  full  assurance  on  both  these  points, 
are  calculated  to  fill  us  with  admiration  and  wonder. 

Thus  we  find  the  beginning  of  human  knowledge  to  be 
received  into  the  mind  by  revelation,  which  is  made  in  the 
mode  and  through  the  senses  that  are  appropriate  to  the 
character  of  this  knowledge.  We  need  not  here  enter 
further  into  the  philosophy  of  perception.  It  is  necessary 
only  to  emphasize  the  fact  that  the  single  obvious  duty  of 
man  in  this  relation  is  to  observe.  This,  clearly,  is  the 
only  function  of  the  mind  that  he  is  now  called  upon  to 
exercise.  The  objects  of  sense  are  not  created  by  the 
mind.  Their  nature  and  condition  are  not  in  any  way 
affected  by  its  action.  They  are  merely  shown  to  it,  and 
perceived  by  it.  Man  becomes  a  conscious,  voluntary 
and  active  agent  in  receiving  knowledge  of  this  character 
merely  by  observing. 

But  a  mind  is  conceivable  that  refuses  to  receive  knowl- 
edge in  this  way — that  declines  to  submit 'to  any  such 
test  of  the  correctness  of  its  preconceptions — that  insists 
that  all  these  appearances  are  contrary  to  reason.  In- 
stances of  such  refusal  are  common  enough  where  the  facts 
have  been  observed  by  others.  An  example  of  this  was 
furnished  a  few  years  ago  by  some  German  geographers, 
who  had  constructed  a  map  of  the  interior  of  Africa  as 
they  concluded  it  necessarily  must  be,  and  who  declared 
the  reports  of  certain  discoveries,  when  first  announced, 


76  THE  REVELATION  OF  OBJECTS  OF  SENSE. 

to  be  untrue,  because  the  lakes  and  rivers  discovered  had 
not  been  so  laid  down  on  their  map. 

But  we  are  supposing  the  case  of  a  man  who  rejects, 
as  unreasonable,  facts  which  are  being  continually  verified 
by  the  general  observation  of  mankind.  Common-sense, 
however,  recognizes  the  conclusiveness  of  the  tests  em- 
ployed, and  the  fitness  of  the  physical  senses  for  this  work 
of  observation  and  verification. 

The  argument  which  I  wish  to  urge'is  made  very  strong 
by  the  fact  that  there  is  no  such  person.  No  sane  man 
ever  thought  of  any  thing  so  obviously  absurd,  as  in  this 
field  to  set  the  conclusions  of  any  process  of  reasoning 
above  the  facts  established  by  observation. 

But  such  a  misdirection  of  our  mental  activities  would 
be  no  more  ridiculous  than  are  those  misapplications  of 
them  that  we  are  accustomed  to  see  in  the  opposite  direc- 
tion. We  behold  continual  attempts  made  to  establish 
imagined  spiritual  realities  or  truths  by  processes  of  rea- 
soning, when  it  is  evident  that  reasoning  is  not  the  means 
of  spiritual  revelation,  any  more  than  it  is  the  means  of 
physical  revelation. 

The  present  consideration  of  the  subject  of  perception 
will  be  concluded  with  two  observations  : 

First. — Perception  through  our  physical  senses  is  ob- 
viously the  only  way  in  which  external  objects  could  be 
revealed  to  us.  Language  could  convey  no  idea  of  them. 
These  senses  are  expressly  adapted  to  receive  the  images 
of  these  forms  of  truth,  and  to  present  these  images  and 
verify  them  to  our  consciousness. 

Second. — We  shall  find  this  to  be  the  universal  law. 
Every  fact  and  truth,  physical  and  spiritual,  from  the 
lowest  to  the  highest,  is,  in  like  manner,  revealed  to  man, 
in  the  only  possible  way, — through  corresponding  senses, 
which  are  expressly  adapted  to  receive  it,  and  to  present 
it  and  verify  it  to  consciousness. 


THE  RE  VELA  TION  OF  OBJECTS  OF  SENSE.  77 

We  come  now  to  consider  the  revelation  of  the  facts  of 
natural  science.  Here  an  interesting  distinction  presents 
itself.  The  ordinary  objects  of  sense,  when  these  are  first 
beheld  by  any  individual  who  is  capable  of  reflection,  are 
viewed  with  the  consciousness  that,  while  new  to  him, 
they  are  familiar  to  others,  and  have  been  so  to  all  genera- 
tions of  men.  But  in  the  case  of  a  fact  in  science  there  is 
always  a  discoverer,  to  whom  the  fact  is  first  disclosed, 
and  by  whom  it  is  viewed,  as  Galileo  beheld  the  planet 
Venus  crescent  like  the  moon,  or  the  satellites  revolving 
about  Jupiter,  or  as  recently  the  satellites  of  Mars  were 
seen  by  Hall,  with  the  consciousness  that  he  is  the  first  of 
mortals  to  behold  it,  and  that  through  him  the  knowledge 
of  it  is  to  be  conveyed  to  the  minds  of  his  race. 

In  all  cases,  however,  there  is  the  certainty  that  the 
fact  itself  is  not  new.  There  is  an  intelligence  to  whom  it 
has  always  been  familiar,  while  it  is  not  unreasonable  to 
suppose  that  there  may  also  be  an  infinity  of  intelligences, 
to  whom  it  was  known  before.  In  most  cases,  as  in  that 
of  the  pressure  of  the  atmosphere,  we  find  that  the  fact, 
while  it  was  yet  all  unknown  to  man,  had  its  myriad  uses. 
When  once  the  fact  has  been  disclosed  to  us,  these  uses 
are  found  to  come  within  our  comprehension,  and  to  be 
in  immediate  connection  with  our  own  daily  life,  just  as 
multitudes  of  facts  doubtless  are,  of  the  nature  of  which 
we  still  remain  in  ignorance.  We  then  discover  that  all 
nature  had  been  adapted  to  this  fact,  that  in  the  infinite 
complications  as  it  appears  to  us,  but  what  in  reality  is 
the  harmonious  interrelation  of  all  created  things,  this  fact 
was  essential  to  the  performance  of  innumerable  functions 
by  other  agencies  ;  that  in  the  beginning  it  had  formed  a 
necessary  feature  in  the  plan  of  the  creation. 

In  natural  science,  discoveries  are  made  only  by  the 
activity  of  the  mind  in  observing — the  same  mode  in 


78  THE  RE  VELA  TION  OF  OBJECTS  OF  SENSE. 

which  the  mind  exercises  itself  in  forming  images  of  any 
objects  in  nature.  The  difference  lies  only  in  the  closeness 
of  the  observation,  in  the  degree  of  attention  that  is  given 
and  of  discrimination  that  is  made.  Between  these  dif- 
ferent degrees  of  spiritual  application  no  line  of  separation 
can  be  drawn.  We  pass  by  insensible  steps  from  one 
extreme  of  care  and  power  in  observation  to  the  other. 
From  the  discovery  of  our  own  hands  in  infancy,  up 
through  familiarity  with  all  things  as  they  are  presented 
to  us,  still  up  until  we  reach  what  are  known  as  elemental 
forms  of  matter,  still  up  until  the  trained  and  penetrating 
intelligence  is  able  to  affirm  the  constitution  of  suns  and 
nebulae,  and  further  still  through  all  physical  discoveries 
yet  to  be  made,  we  find  our  progress  to  be  possible  only 
by  directing  our  spiritual  being  into  the  same  form  of 
activity,  with  reference  to  different  ends,  by  the  aid  of 
different  helps,  and  in  each  case  with  the  concentration, 
often  long  continued,  of  our  entire  power  of  mental 
activity  upon  a  single  object. 

In  all  these  cases  alike,  we  deal  with  those  manifesta- 
tions of  force  which  are  familiarly  known  as  matter,  and 
for  the  apprehension  of  which  by  us  these  manifestations 
and  our  physical  senses  are  mutually  adapted.  In  all 
alike,  the  mind,  in  order  to  be  fit  for  the  reception  of  the 
true  image,  must  be  absolutely  free  from  preconceptions, 
so  as  to  be  able,  with  just  discrimination,  to  estimate  all 
appearances  at  their  true  value. 

Moreover,  every  mind  must  be  at  liberty  to  point  out 
the  oversights  or  the  misconceptions  of  any  other  mind, 
so  that,  through  many  independent  observers,  every  form 
of  personal  error  may  be  detected  and  corrected.  In  this 
way  the  true  idea,  corresponding  to  the  reality,  is  finally 
determined. 

It  will  be  observed  that  discoveries  in  science  are  made 


THE  REVELATION  OF  OBJECTS  OF  SENSE.  79 

by  the  faithful  employment  of  all  the  powers  and  means 
of  observation  that  are  either  directly  given  to  man,  or 
that  he  is  endowed  with  the  ability  to  produce.  This  is  the 
way  in  which  the  facts  in  physical  science  are  revealed 
to  us,  and,  as  was  observed  with  respect  to  the  ordinary 
objects  of  perception,  it  is  obviously,  as  we  are  constituted, 
the  only  way  in  which  these  facts  could  be  revealed. 
From  the  complete  adaptation  of  our  physical  senses  to 
this  work  of  perception  and  verification,  we  have  the  same 
right  to  conclude  that  they  were  expressly  designed  by 
their  Maker  for  this  obvious  and  necessary  use,  that  we 
have  to  conclude  that  the  instruments  that  we  employ  to 
aid  us  in  these  researches  were  expressly  designed  for  this 
purpose  by  their  makers. 

It  is  a  fact  well  worthy  of  observation,  that  it  has  never 
occurred  to  any  one  to  say :  If  we  possessed  an  additional 
sense,  we  would  then  be  able  to  apply  an  additional  test 
of  the  reality  of  external  objects,  or  of  the  correctness  of 
the  images  of  these  objects  that  we  form  in  our  minds. 
This  has  never  occurred  to  any  one,  and  it  never  can  oc- 
cur to  any  one,  because  we  do  not  feel  any  such  want. 
Up  to  the  point  which  we  find  to  be  the  present  limit  of 
our  knowledge,  we  perceive  our  equipment  for  both  these 
purposes  to  be  complete.  Within  this  limit,  we  cannot 
conceive  of  any  use  for  another  sense.  We  cannot  im- 
agine a  test  additional  to  those  which  we  are  now  able  to 
apply.  With  respect  both  to  the  reality  of  the  object  and 
the  correctness  of  the  image  of  it  which  we  form,  the 
employment  of  the  senses  that  we  have  brings  entire  con- 
viction and  satisfaction  to  our  minds. 

We  note  here  already  the  appearance  of  the  universal 
law  of  hungering  and  thirsting.  The  pearls  of  science  are 
not  cast  before  swine.  Physical  truth  can  be  imparted 
only  to  those  minds  which  have  been  prepared  to  receive 


80  THE  RE  VELA  TION  OF  OBJECTS  OF  SENSE. 

it,  which  are  devoted  to  the  search  after  it,  and  which  prize 
it  above  rubies.  Minds  that  are  in  any  degree  indifferent 
to  it  must,  just  in  that  degree,  remain  dead  to  its  exist- 
ence. And,  on  the  other  hand,  the  completeness  of  the 
preparation,  and  the  earnestness  of  the  search,  measure 
the  degree  in  which  this  form  of  truth,  like  every  other,  is 
or,  properly  speaking,  can  be  imparted  to  man. 

In  concluding  these  remarks  upon  the  revelation  of  the 
physical  creation,  I  desire  to  call  special  attention  to  the 
fact,  that  this  revelation  is  always  inclusive  of  the  verifica- 
tion both  of  the  reality  of  objects,  and  of  the  truth  of  the 
images  of  them  that  we  see  in  consciousness.  No  ques- 
tion can  arise  here  about  the  criterion  of  truth.  The  evi- 
dence is  conclusive  to  the  mind  that  is  prepared  to  receive 
the  truth  at  all.  The  inquirer  has  been  to  the  highest 
source  of  knowledge  that  he  can  conceive  of — in  fact,  he 
has  been  to  a  higher  source  than  he  can  conceive,  and  he 
is  satisfied.  This  we  shall  find  to  be  the  case  universally. 
Every  form  of  revelation  is  of  such  a  nature  as  to  be  con- 
clusive of  its  own  truth,  to  minds  which  are  prepared  for 
its  reception. 


COOPERATION. 


A  DIFFICULTY  has  doubtless  already  occurred  to  the 
reader,  in  the  way  of  admitting  the  truth,  that  we  obtain 
all  our  knowledge  by  revelation.  This  apparent  difficulty 
lies  in  the  fact,  that  knowledge  is  so  obviously  acquired  by 
our  own  exertion.  In  the  mere  work  of  perception,  already 
first  considered,  we  are  required  to  employ  our  senses,  and 
to  bring  our  spiritual  being  into  a  state  of  activity;  and 
in  the  higher  departments  the  mental  effort  by  which 
knowledge  is  acquired  is  still  more  serious,  being  in  most 
cases  the  utmost  of  which  we  are  capable.  How,  then, 
can  knowledge  be  said  to  be  revealed  to  us  ?  Before  pro- 
ceeding further,  it  is  necessary  that  this  question  be 
answered. 

The  same  difficulty  comes  in  the  way  of  our  under- 
standing the  truth,  that  all  our  possessions  are  given  to  us, 
when,  apparently,  we  get  them  ourselves.  These  pos- 
sessions are  the  direct  fruit  of  our  own  exertions,  unless 
we  have  obtained  those  which  are  the  fruit  of  the  exer- 
tions of  somebody  else.  In  the  same  manner,  all  achieve- 
ment is  the  result  of  properly  directed  and  adequate  effort, 
and  cannot  be  reached  in  any  other  way. 

The  truth  about  all  this  matter  was  fitly  illustrated  by 
the  Christ,  in  the  declaration  that  our  Heavenly  Father 
feeds  the  fowls  of  the  air,  although  we  have  the  evidence 
of  our  senses  that  they  feed  themselves.  When,  how- 

81 


82  COOPERA  T10N. 

ever,  we  consider  the  matter,  we  observe  that  the  series  of 
acts  which  are  necessary  to  sustain  the  existence  of  the 
fowls  of  the  air  is  long  and  interrelated  far  beyond  our 
power  to  trace.  Of  all  these  acts,  the  conscious  and  volun- 
tary performance  of  one  only  is  committed  to  the  fowls 
themselves.  They  have  merely  to  take  the  food  and 
drink  that  they  find  provided  for  them,  and  adapted 
to  their  sustenance.  We  observe  further,  that  this  single 
intermediate  act  is  the  only  act  for  the  support  of  their 
existence  that  the  fowls  have  the  ability  to  perform.  The 
power  is  given  them  to  do  that  which  is  required  of  them, 
and  which  is  committed  to  them  to  be  done,  and  no  more. 
This  is  precisely  the  case  with  man.  All  difficulty  dis- 
appears from  this  subject,  when  we  consider  how  many 
things  are  necessary  to  be  done,  in  order  that  any  revela- 
tion may  be  received,  or  any  result  be  accomplished,  by 
man  ;  and,  out  of  this  inconceivable  number  and  variety 
of  acts,  how  few  have  been  committed  to  man  himself. 
Almost  every  thing  is  done  for  him.  It  is  especially  note- 
worthy that,  as  in  the  case  of  the  fowls,  so  also  in  that  of 
man,  the  little  that  is  left  for  him  to  do  is  all  that  he  can 
do.  In  its  nature  and  its  extent  it  is  precisely  adapted  to 
his  powers.  It  fully  employs  them.  He  is  called  upon  to 
exert  himself  to  the  full  extent  of  his  ability.  There  is 
nothing,  above  that  which  man  enjoys  in  common  with 
inanimate  nature,  that  he  can  receive  without  his  own 
voluntary  cooperative  effort.  From  the  supply  of  his 
lowest  bodily  wants,  up  to  the  satisfying  of  the  highest 
longings  of  his  spiritual  being,  his  own  active  cooperation 
is  the  condition  essential  to  every  gift.  We  are  able  to 
perceive  that  this  must  be  the  case,  in  the  very  nature  of 
things.  The  desire  and  the  receptive  power  or  condition 
must  exist  on  the  part  of  man.  There  obviously  cannot 
be  such  a  thing  as  the  passive  reception  by  man  of  any 


COOPERATION.  83 

good,  above  that  which,  as  already  stated,  he  shares  in 
common  with  inanimate  nature. 

We  shall,  in  a  later  paper,  have  occasion  to  observe  the 
fact,  that  all  the  apparently  independent  agencies  in  nature 
are  working  together  in  harmony,  cooperating  with  each 
other  in  ceaseless  activity  and  to  the  full  extent  of  their 
efficiency,  for  a  single  immediate  purpose,  and  that  this 
purpose  is  the  well-being  and  happiness  of  man.  We 
have  now  presented  to  us  the  further  fact,  that  man,  on 
his  part,  must  join  in  this  harmonious  activity  ;  that  in 
order  to  become  the  recipient  of  any  good  whatever,  from 
the  lowest  up  to  the  highest  conceivable,  he  must  perform 
his  appointed  part.  All  agencies  of  which  we  have  any 
knowledge  are  working  for  him,  and  we  may  naturally 
suppose  that  this  beneficent  activity  extends  also  to  agen- 
cies which  it  is  beyond  our  power  to  discern  ;  yet  all 
must  be  to  no  purpose,  without  the  voluntary  cooperation 
of  man  himself. 

This  law  of  cooperation  is  a  most  important  one.  A 
clear  apprehension  of  its  universal  and  necessary  nature 
will  aid  us  to  the  understanding  of  much  that  for  the 
want  of  such  apprehension  is  often  obscured.  I  shall 
here  limit  myself  to  a  single  illustration  of  this  law, 
drawn  from  the  primary  labor  of  man.  While  thus  ob- 
served only  in  its  first  and  most  simple  application,  its 
universal  nature  will  be  obvious.  Then,  when  we  resume 
the  line  of  thought,  now  interrupted,  we  shall  see  the  fact 
continually  manifested,  that  man's  voluntary  cooperative 
activity  is  the  essential  condition  of  the  communication  to 
him,  or  reception  by  him,  of  any  gift,  or  any  revelation, 
and  may  properly  be  considered  as  the  mode  in  which 
these  are  imparted  to  him. 

It  is  assumed  as  obvious  that  there  must  be  an  Infinite 
Giver,  from  whom  we  receive  every  thing,  including  our 


84  COOPER  A  TION. 

existence.  Beyond  this  gift  of  existence,  there  are  only 
four  things  that  we  obviously  receive  without  our  own 
cooperation,  which,  in  a  sense  more  or  less  absolute,  may 
be  termed  voluntary.  These  are  light,  warmth,  air,  and 
water. 

Light  fills  the  universe,  and  enters  our  open  organs  of 
sight.  We  may  say  that  no  act  on  our  part,  either  volun- 
tary or  involuntary,  is  required  in  order  that  light  shall 
enter  these  organs,  and  there  form  the  images  of  external 
objects.  Indeed,  we  must  close  our  eyes  in  order  to  keep 
the  light  and  the  images  out.  So  also  from  the  same 
source,  the  sun,  we  are  warmed  without  any  act  on  our 
part. 

After  these  first  gifts  of  light  and  warmth,  it  is  interest- 
ing to  observe  the  gradual  manner  in  which  our  acts,  upon 
which  the  reception  of  all  other  gifts  depends,  assume  a 
voluntary  character.  At  first  the  act  is  compelled  by  a 
sensation  of  want.  It  becomes  truly  voluntary  only  when 
choice  has  become  free. 

With  respect  to  air,  we  have  our  being  at  the  bottom  of 
an  atmospheric  ocean,  in  which  both  the  earth  and  all 
things  and  beings  upon  it  are  immersed,  and  out  of  which 
no  animal  or  vegetable  could  exist.  To  receive  the  air 
into  our  bodies,  there  to  perform  its  amazing  functions, 
we  have  only  to  breathe.  The  act  of  breathing  can 
hardly  be  called  voluntary  in  any  sense.  The  necessity  is 
urgent,  the  supply  is  instant,  and  the  act  is  performed 
with  equal  regularity  in  our  conscious  and  our  unconscious 
states. 

Water,  the  next  universal  necessity,  universally  pro- 
vided, we  must  drink.  This  is  only  a  semi-voluntary  act. 
It  is  performed  under  the  pressure  of  an  impulse,  which, 
if  not  sooner  yielded  to,  grows  to  be  irresistible. 

It  is  to  be  observed  that  we  share  these  four  gifts  with 


COOP  ERA  T1ON.  85 

all  organic  being,  vegetable  as  well  as  animal.  The  exist- 
ence of  all  alike  is  dependent  upon  them  ;  and  in  each 
one  of  these,  and  in  the  relations  that  each  one  sustains 
to  all  being,  there  are  involved  infinite  wonders,  to  which 
the  mind  that  is  in  the  least  degree  thoughtful  cannot, 
even  by  constant  familiarity,  be  rendered  insensible. 

But  we  now  pass  beyond  these.  The  vegetable  creation 
has  only  to  expose  itself  to  the  warmth  and  the  light  of 
the  sun,  to  breathe  and  to  drink.  Animals  must  also  eat. 
But  for  every  creature  except  man  its  food  also  is  pro- 
vided, to  be  eaten  in  the  state  in  which  it  is  found.  Man 
alone  feels  the  need,  and  possesses  the  intelligence,  to  till 
the  ground  and  to  make  a  fire.  These  are  acts,  additional 
to  the  single  one  required  of  the  animal,  for  which  man's 
intelligence  was  obviously  given  to  him,  and  which  he  is 
left  to  perform.  In  the  nature  of  things,  a  command  is 
laid  upon  him  to  perform  these  acts,  and  this  command 
he  must  obey. 

Here,  in  the  work  of  supplying  his  lowest  physical 
wants,  man's  voluntary  cooperative  agency  begins,  never 
to  cease.  And  even  here  we  cannot  fail  to  be  struck  with 
the  relative  insignificance  of  the  part  that  is  committed  to 
man,  essential  though  that  part  be.  The  earth  to  be 
tilled  and  the  grain  to  be  sown  are  provided  for  him. 
With  this  provision  he  certainly  had  nothing  to  do. 
And  now  in  faith  and  trust,  not  in  the  sunshine  nor  the 
rain,  but,  whether  consciously  or  unconsciously  it  matters 
not,  in  reality,  faith  and  trust  in  the  Infinite  Goodness 
which  is  manifested  in  the  sunshine  and  the  rain,  and  in 
the  assurance  of  that  Power,  whether  heard  or  felt  it  mat- 
ters not,  that  in  the  sweat  of  his  face  he  shall  eat  his 
bread,  he  tills  the  ground  and  buries  the  seed  out  of  his 
sight.  In  this  simple  act  his  appointed  work  is  done. 
His  part  is  performed.  Now  he  has  only  to  wait  and  won- 


86  COOPER  A  TION. 

der,  while  the  sun  shines  and  the  rains  descend,  and  the 
earth  yields  her  increase.  The  seed  springs  and  grows,  he 
knows  not  how,  and  multiplies  and  ripens  for  the  harvest. 
It  will  not  be  necessary  to  pursue  this  subject  further  as 
a  separate  topic.  The  analogy  which  the  mind  naturally 
perceives  renders  the  general  conclusion  sufficiently  ob- 
vious from  this  single  illustration,  that,  at  least  in  the 
present  stage  of  our  existence,  our  own  cooperation  must 
be  a  universal  requirement.  The  correctness  of  this  con- 
clusion all  observation  of  human  affairs  confirms.  We  are 
prepared  to  recognize  all  human  activity  as  the  different 
modes  of  man's  cooperative  work.  We  repeat  that  there 
cannot  be  such  a  thing  as  the  passive  reception  by  us  of 
any  good,  above  that  which  we  enjoy  in  common  with  all 
animate  and  inanimate  nature.  The  receptive  state  of 
man  is  a  state  of  activity.  Accordingly,  throughout  the 
diverse  modes  of  revelation,  varying  as  these  do  with  the 
varied  nature  of  the  truths  revealed,  we  shall  find  running, 
precisely  as  analogy  would  lead  us  to  expect,  the  unity  of 
man's  cooperation. 


THE  REVELATION  OF  MECHANICAL  TRUTH. 


THE  subject  of  revelation  will  now  be  resumed,  by  con- 
templating briefly  the  revelation  of  mechanical  truth.  I 
do  not  propose  to  view  mechanical  truth  here  in  its  larg- 
est aspect ;  but  merely  to  present  some  considerations 
suggested  by  the  practical  applications  of  this  form  of 
truth  which  are  made  by  man. 

We  mark  at  this  point  the  first  important  transition. 
In  a  preceding  paper  we  had  our  attention  occupied  by 
the  revelation  of  the  forms  of  matter,  or  the  sensible 
manifestations  of  force.  Now,  we  are  brought  into  im- 
mediate contact  with  the  unseen.  From  what  we  term 
things,  which,  indeed,  are  only  embodied  thoughts,  but 
which  are  not  often  so  regarded  by  us,  because  our  atten- 
tion is  commonly  arrested  by  the  object  itself,  we  pass  to 
the  direct  contemplation  of  thought,  and  of  those  em- 
bodiments of  thought  that  have  been  committed  to  us. 

In  mechanical  science  we  find  ourselves  to  have  been 
placed  between  two  creations,  the  seen  and  the  unseen,  as 
the  agents  for  the  embodiment  of  thought.  Beyond  that 
provision  for  our  existence  which  we  share  with  the 
animal  creation,  we  discover  a  boundless  preparation 
which  has  been  made  for  our  welfare  and  happiness,  and 
the  employment  or  the  utilization  of  which  has  been  com- 
mitted to  our  hands.  The  transition  that  we  make  here 
is  not  in  reality  so  great  as  at  first  it  seems  to  be.  It  is 

87 


88         THE  REVELATION  OF  MECHANICAL  TRUTH. 

only  from  those  thoughts  which  have  been  completely 
embodied  for  us  to  those  which,  in  a  great  multitude  of 
their  applications,  have  been  left  to  be  embodied  by  us. 

For  the  purpose  of  this  embodiment,  these  thoughts 
must  be  communicated  to  us.  The  common  idea  is  that 
mechanical  discoveries  and  inventions  are  made  by  men, 
and  there  we  are  accustomed  to  stop.  But  the  properly 
developed  mind  cannot  rest  upon  this  idea.  We  have 
already  dwelt  upon  the  character  of  minds  by  which  alone 
mechanical  truth  can  be  originally  apprehended,  and 
upon  the  process  through  which  such  minds  must  pass,  in 
order  to  arrive  at  the  completed,  or,  as  Ave  say,  the 
matured,  thought  of  any  invention  or  discovery.  To  a 
mind  that  is  prepared  to  receive  it  a  mechanical  truth  is 
disclosed  gradually.  Seen  dimly  at  first,  through  close 
and  often  protracted  application,  and  by  submission  to 
constant  practical  correction,  the  thought  grows  in  dis- 
tinctness, until  at  last  it  appears  clear  and  self-luminous. 

The  fact  has  already  been  assumed,  that  these  thoughts, 
in  their  completeness,  are  imparted  to  the  mind  by  direct 
revelation,  and  that  this  laborious  search  is  our  necessary 
cooperative  act,  or  the  mode  in  which  these  revelations 
are  made  to  us.  It  is  now  proposed  to  examine  more 
closely  the  grounds  on  which  our  acceptance  of  this  im- 
portant truth  is  to  be  rested. 

When  we  reflect  on  the  subject,  one  confirmation  of 
this  truth  presents  itself  after  another.  We  cannot  con- 
ceive of  thought  except  as  existing  in  a  mind.  Indeed, 
we  know  nothing  of  thought  except  as  a  function  of  mind. 
We  note,  concerning  the  thought  of  any  mechanical  con- 
struction, as  Avas  observed  concerning  the  facts  of  natural 
science,  and  the  thoughts  which  are  embodied  in  them, 
that  the  thought  itself  is  not  new.  It  is  certain  that  there 
must  be  a  Supreme  Intelligence  to  whom  this  thought  has 


THE  REVELATION  OF  MECHANICAL  TRUTH.         89 

always  been  known,  a  Mind  in  which  it  has  always  exist- 
ed ;  and  as  with  physical  truth,  so  here  also,  we  may 
rationally  suppose  superior  intelligences  to  exist,  in  infi- 
nite number,  to  whom  it  was  known  before.  In  fact  we 
cannot  draw  the  line  between  physical  and  mechanical 
truth.  These  are  intimately  associated  with  each  other. 
We  pass  from  one  to  the  other  by  insensible  steps.  We 
see  physical  truth  everywhere  underlying  mechanical 
truth.  Moreover,  we  find  throughout  nature,  especially 
in  animal  structures,  embodiments  of  mechanical  thought, 
which  we  recognize  as  being  essentially  the  same  as  our 
own.  Physical  and  mechanical  truths  cannot  be  essential- 
ly distinguished  from  each  other.  Their  common  origin 
is  apparent.  Whether,  therefore,  mechanical  thoughts 
are  completed  in  their  embodiment  by  the  Creator,  or  are 
in  any  part  committed  for  this  purpose  to  man,  the  truth 
of  their  eternal  existence  in  the  Infinite  Mind,  in  all  their 
completeness,  however  great  may  be  the  mystery  that  it 
involves,  is  one  that  we  find  ourselves  compelled  to  assent 
to,  as  much  as  to  the  eternity  of  physical  thought. 

Of  the  latter  class  of  thoughts,  Columbus  was  pene- 
trated with  one,  namely,  the  thought  that  the  earth  is 
round.  But  clearly  this  thought  had  existed  in  the  Infi- 
nite Mind  since  the  earth  assumed  its  form.  Of  the 
former  class,  let  us  consider  some  of  the  grander  thoughts 
to  which  mechanical  science  has  given  embodiment,  and 
which  have  thus  become  important  agencies  in  the  civili- 
zation of  our  race.  These  are  thoughts  of  the  varied  ap- 
plications of  steam  and  electricity,  which,  in  annihilating 
space  and  time  in  so  large  a  degree,  point  unmistakably  to 
a  state  of  being  in  which  our  existence  shall  be  wholly  in- 
dependent of  these  conditions. 

It  Is  not  possible  that  any  of  these  thoughts  can  be 
new,  in  the  absolute  sense  of  that  term  ;  for  they  constitute 


90         THE  REVELATION  OF  MECHANICAL  TRUTH. 

agencies  of  an  essential  character  in  the  work  of  human 
development,  and  they  must,  therefore,  have  held  a  cor- 
responding place  in  the  scheme  of  that  development. 
Neither  is  it  conceivable  that  these  thoughts  could  have 
been  originated  by  man  independently  without  having 
been  imparted  to  him  directly  by  the  Divine  Intelligence. 
The  mode  in  which  they  are  reached  by  us  forbids  such  a 
conception. 

The  divine  ordering  of  human  affairs  involves,  of  neces- 
sity, the  communication  of  mechanical  truths  to  man,  as 
he  becomes  prepared  for  their  reception.  Rightly  viewed, 
then,  the  idea  of  the  direct  revelation  of  these  truths  is 
seen  to  be  not  only  the  natural,  but  the  necessary  idea. 
No  other  case  is  conceivable,  unless  belief  in  the  Infinite 
Mind  be  rejected  altogether. 

But  if  the  foreordering  and  the  communication  to  man 
of  the  most  general  mechanical  thoughts  be  admitted, 
then  this  admission  must  extend  to  the  most  minute  as 
well.  There  is  no  place  where  a  line  of  separation  can  be 
drawn.  Every  part  of  any  mechanical  structure,  however 
inconsiderable  it  may  be,  has  its  own  especial  function, 
that  must  be  performed,  and  which  it  only  can  perform. 
It  constitutes  an  essential  feature  of  the  complete  concep- 
tion. In  the  Eternal  Mind  thought  is  always  complete. 
The  minuteness  of  its  detail  is  infinite.  This  is  illustrated 
everywhere  in  nature.  So,  when  fully  revealed  to  man,  me- 
chanical thought  must  be  revealed  in  all  its  completeness. 

This  subject  may  be  considered  also  from  another  point 
of  view,  and  such  consideration,  it  seems  to  me,  can 
hardly  fail  to  fix  more  firmly  in  the  mind  the  conviction 
of  the  direct  revelation  of  mechanical  truth. 

All  forms  of  matter  have  evidently  been  prepared  with 
reference  to  such  revelation.  Matter,  in  a  large  degree, 
exists  for  the  embodiment  of  thoughts  by  man.  This  is 


THE  REVELATION  OF  MECHANICAL  TRUTH.        gi 

its  great  use.  For  many  of  its  forms  it  is  the  only  ap- 
parent use.  The  completeness  of  the  adaptation  of  mat- 
ter to  this  use  is  the  subject  of  ever  growing  wonder. 
Matter  has  waited  through  inconceivable  duration  for 
these  uses  to  appear,  for  these  thoughts  to  be  formed  in 
human  minds.  During  this  period  it  has  passed  through 
successive  changes,  and  its  various  forms  have  entered 
into  multiplied  combinations,  the  uniform  result  of  which 
has  been  to  adapt  it  for  varied  uses,  to  which  in  many 
cases  it  was  not  adapted  in  its  original  condition.  We 
naturally  conclude,  therefore,  that  adaptation  to  these 
uses  was  the  purpose  of  these  changes. 

The  absolute  dependence  of  man  upon  matter  for  the 
embodiment  or  realization  of  his  mechanical  conceptions, 
and  the  complete  fitness  of  matter  for  this  purpose,  consti- 
tute one  of  those  amazing  correspondences  with  which 
nature  is  everywhere  filled.  The  fundamental  thought 
which,  precedent  to  any  activity,  is  always  formed  in  the 
mind,  is  a  thought  of  something  to  be  done,  of  some  end 
to  be  accomplished.  The  thoughts  which  succeed  to  this 
primary  thought  relate  entirely  to  matter,  as  affording 
the  means  for  the  accomplishment  of  this  purpose.  These 
thoughts  group  themselves  under  two  heads.  The  first 
is,  the  selection  of  the  material  suitable  for  the  purpose. 
The  second  is,  the  mode  of  the  application  of  this  material 
to  the  purpose.  The  relation  between  thought  and  matter 
is,  therefore,  obvious.  Matter  exists  for  the  embodiment 
of  thought.  Each  is  necessary  to  the  other.  Each  is 
complementary  to  the  other.  The  two  are  coordinate 
parts  of  one  whole. 

We  cannot,  then,  stop  short  of  the  evident  truth,  that 
thought  and  matter  are  from  the  same  source  ;  that,  as 
man  cannot  create  matter,  so  neither  can  he  originate 
thought ;  that,  as  the  forms  of  matter  are  shown  to  man 


92         THE  REVELATION  OF  MECHANICAL  TRUTH. 

through  his  physical  organs  of  perception,  so  also  every 
true  mechanical  thought  is  revealed  immediately  to  his 
mind  ;  and  that,  with  reference  to  his  work  universally, 
he  receives  the  command  that  Moses  received,  and  which, 
from  the  very  constitution  of  his  being  he  must  obey, 
"  See  that  thou  make  all  things  according  to  the  pattern 
shewed  to  thee  in  the  mount." 

We  must  not  overlook  the  threefold  unity  of  thought, 
matter,  and  man,  which  is  apparent  through  their  mutual 
adaptations.  In  the  great  scheme,  the  part  assigned  to 
man  is  the  material  embodiment  of  thought.  The  pur- 
pose that  man  conceives  to-day  is  new  to  him,  but,  if  it 
be  in  accordance  with  realities,  it  has  existed,  and  matter 
has  been  prepared  for  its  realization,  from  the  beginning. 
It  is  now  shown  to  him,  and  so  he  shares  the  thought, 
and  becomes,  through  his  free  and  yet  obedient  activity, 
the  agent  to  execute  the  will,  and  accomplish  the  purpose, 
of  the  Infinite  Mind. 

The  impressive  truth  now  appears,  that  these  purposes 
are  all  purposes  of  good  to  man  himself.  There  can  be 
no  escape  from  this  obvious  fact.  Man  is  employed  as 
the  active  agent  in  promoting  his  own  happiness,  in 
effecting  his  own  civilization.  This  is  the  beneficent  end, 
to  the  accomplishment  of  which  matter  in  its  innumer- 
able forms  is  adapted,  and  for  which  all  thoughts  which 
relate  to  matter  and  its  uses  have  been,  and  are  continu- 
ally being,  imparted  to  man. 

We  see  clearly  enough  that  mechanical  thoughts  and 
uses  for  matter  are  fundamental  requisites  to  the  civilization 
of  our  race.  Civilization  appears  only  as  these  thoughts 
are  disclosed  to  man.  To  the  Indian  few  and  simple 
were  the  thoughts  revealed,  and  so  for  him  the  forests 
decayed  unused,  and  the  marble  and  the  ore  lay  unsunned. 
The  revelation  of  mechanical  thoughts  has  been  made  to 


THE   REVELATION   OF  MECHANICAL  TRUTH.         93 

man  very  gradually,  one  thought  at  a  time,  and  in  the 
order  in  which  he  has  become  prepared  to  receive  them. 
Sometimes  these  revelations  have  been  separated  by 
long  intervals,  at  other  times  they  have  come  crowded 
thickly  together.  They  have  appeared  in  grander  and 
yet  grander  procession  since  free  thought  began,  in  the 
pure  worship  of  Him  "  in  whom  are  hid  all  the  treasures 
of  wisdom  and  knowledge." 

The  question  presents  itself  respecting  the  multitude  of 
erroneous  mechanical  ideas,  mistaken  notions,  false  con- 
ceptions, which  first  present  themselves  in  the  mind, 
whence  do  all  these  come  ?  The  only  answer  to  this 
question  is,  that  we  do  not  know.  We  do  know  the  fact, 
although  we  are  ignorant  why  it  is  so,  that  every  thing 
requires  its  opposite.  As  there  cannot  be  height  without 
depth,  or  the  right-hand  direction  without  the  left,  so, 
under  the  present  limited  conditions  of  our  being,  there 
can  be  no  truth  without  corresponding  error.  Moreover, 
while  truth  is  single,  error  is  legion.  Here  we  encounter 
this  law  of  opposites,  and  within  ourselves  we  find  not 
only  an  inability  to  choose  correctly,  to  distinguish  be- 
tween the  true  and  the  false,  but  that  almost  always  some 
form  of  error  is  the  first  to  appear,  which  we  feel  the  in- 
clination to  accept  and  follow  as  the  truth.  We  find  also 
that  from  without,  and  involved  in  the  very  nature  and 
method  of  the  revelation,  a  test  appears,  that  we  at  once 
recognize  to  be  infallible,  by  which  we  shall  know  the  true 
thought  that  is  eternal,  that  alone  inhabits  the  Infinite 
Mind,  that  forms  a  part  of  the  universal  harmony,  and 
shall  be  able  to  distinguish  this  from  every  form  of  error. 
Then  no  place  remains  for  the  latter,  but  as  the  truth 
grows  brighter  in  the  mind  error  vanishes  away. 

The  mode  in  which  mechanical  truth  is  revealed  to  man 
suggests  the  reflection  that  inventions,  form  no  exception 


94         THE  REVELATION  OF  MECHANICAL  TRUTH. 

to  the  rule,  that  mankind  must  receive  all  their  blessings 
through  trial  and  suffering.  Here,  as  everywhere  else, 
this  appears  to  be  the  appointed  way.  How  wonderful  is 
our  mechanical  inheritance  !  Few  persons  ever  attempt, 
what  is  far  beyond  the  power  of  any,  to  imagine  its  ex- 
tent. Every  real  invention  has  been  produced  for  the 
benefit  of  the  human  race  forever.  Many  of  these,  in- 
deed, pass  into  oblivion,  but  not  until  they  have  served  as 
steps  to  something  higher.  What  a  history  of  endurance 
and  weariness  do  inventions  represent !  the  forgotten  ones, 
the  real  germs,  out  of  which  the  trees,  perhaps  long  after, 
grew,  often  costing  most  of  all. 

The  remarks  presented  in  this  paper  are  intended  to 
apply  especially  to  mechanical  inventions.  Respecting 
mechanical  laws,  or  the  uniform  modes  in  which  forces 
act,  or  in  which  matter  behaves  under  the  action  of  force, 
as  well  as  respecting  the  properties  of  matter  which  adapt 
it  for  mechanical  uses,  it  does  not  seem  necessary  to  make 
these  the  subject  of  separate  discussion.  The  train  of 
thought  already  followed  applies  to  them  directly.  It  is 
evident  that  if  any  thing  of  a  physical  nature  is  communi- 
cated to  man  by  revelation,  these  must  be. 


THE  REVELATION  OF  IDEAL  TRUTH. 


LEAVING  now  this  mixed  subject  of  thought  and 
matter  in  their  relations  to  each  other,  we  advance  to 
consider  the  revelation  of  ideal  truth, — of  ideal  quantities, 
magnitudes  and  numbers,  and  the  relations  of  these 
to  each  other,  which  constitute  the  science  of  pure 
mathematics. 

One  may  say  :  "  Surely  these  thoughts  cannot  be  said 
to  be  revealed  to  us,  for  they  are  arrived  at  as  the  result 
of  mental  processes,  and  they  cannot  be  reached  by  us  in 
any  other  way."  There  are,  however,  two  things  that 
place  this  subject  before  us  in  a  different  light.  The  first 
is,  that  these  thoughts  did  not  originate  in  any  finite  in- 
telligence, and  do  not  depend  for  their  existence  on  any 
finite  apprehension  of  them.  They  existed  before  they 
were  conceived  of  by  man,  and  if  there  be  an  Infinite 
Mind,  these  must  have  existed  eternally  in  that  Mind. 
The  second  thing  is,  that  these  thoughts  are  realities,  and 
this  in  a  sense  far  higher  than  that  in  which  any  objects 
in  nature  can  be  said  to  be  realities.  They  are  wholly 
objective  to  us.  They  are  merely  shown  to  us,  and 
observed  by  us  ;  but  they  cannot  be  modified  or  affected 
in  any  way  by  the  action  of  our  minds  in  observing  them. 
Ideal  thoughts  or  truths  become  objects  of  our  perception 
precisely  as  material  forms  do.  The  images  of  them  are 
held  in  our  mental  view,  and  are  there  contemplated  by 

95 


g6  THE  REVELATION  OF  IDEAL  TRUTH. 

us  in  the  same  manner  in  which  the  images  of  sensible 
objects  are. 

The  revelation  is,  then,  as  certain  and  necessary  in  the 
one  case  as  it  is  in  the  other.  The  difference  between  the 
two  cases  lies  wholly  in  the  mode  of  the  revelation.  This 
mode  differs  only  as  is  made  necessary  by  the  different 
natures  of  the  objects  revealed ;  but  the  result,  in  bringing 
the  image  of  the  object  within  our  consciousness,  is  the 
same  in  each  case. 

Concerning  the  revelation  of  ideal  thoughts,  precisely 
as  concerning  the  revelation  of  objects  of  sense,  we  note 
three  things : 

First. — The  mode  in  which  this  revelation  is  given  is 
the  only  mode  in  which,  as  we  are  constituted,  it  could  be 
given  to  us.  Our  power  of  mental  perception  must  be 
developed  by  exercise.  Out  of  the  infinity  of  ideal 
truths,  which  to  superior  intelligences  must  stand  equally 
self-evident  in  their  own  light,  probably  as  parts  of  one 
whole,  only  a  limited  number  are  reached  by  us, 
and  by  most  persons  only  a  very  few,  through  slow  and 
laborious  processes.  Then  those  which  have  been  so 
reached  are  seen  by  us  also  in  the  same  clear  light.  This 
is  obviously  the  necessary  mode  of  the  revelation  of  ideal 
truth  to  man,  and  the  way  in  which  man  must  cooperate 
in  receiving  this  revelation. 

Second. — This  revelation  of  ideal  truths,  like  the  revela- 
tion of  objects  of  sense,  is  inclusive,  first,  of  the  reality  of 
the  objects  revealed,  and,  second,  of  the  correctness  of  our 
images  or  conceptions  of  them.  This  form  of  verification 
we  call  demonstration.  It  is  always  satisfactory  to  our 
minds.  We  cannot  conceive  of  any  additional  test, 
the  application  of  which  would  render  our  conviction 
more  certain  on  either  of  these  points.  We  see  these 
thoughts  to  be  necessarily  true. 


THE  REVELATION  OF  IDEAL  TRUTH.  97 

Third. — We  observe  the  complete  adaptation  of  our 
minds  for  discerning  this  class  of  objects  without  the  aid 
of  the  physical  organs  of  perception.  These  objects  are 
purely  spiritual,  and  are  beheld  by  our  spirits  directly. 
In  order  that  external  or  material  objects  may  be  beheld 
by  us,  images  of  them  must  be  formed  in  consciousness, 
through  the  medium  of  our  senses.  But  we  form  images 
of  these  spiritual  objects  without  such  aids. 

The  following  distinction  appears  to  exist  between 
material  objects  and  these  ideal  objects.  While  in  the  case 
of  material  objects  the  essential  nature  of  each  one  is 
shrouded  in  equal  mystery,  mystery  appears  to  be  predica- 
bl£  of  ideal  objects  only  when  these  are  regarded  as  parts 
of  one  whole.  This  whole  is  infinitely  divisible.  The 
various  individual  objects,  or  ideal  truths,  when  regarded 
separately,  are  of  widely  different  natures,  and  are  adapted 
to  be  apprehended  by  very  different  orders  of  human  in- 
telligence or  development.  To  the  intelligence  perceiving 
it,  each  separate  ideal  truth  is  devoid  of  mystery.  The 
mind  that  comprehends  any  such  truth  sees  it  in  its  uni- 
versal and  necessary  character.  Such  a  mind  can  observe 
the  practical  applications  of  this  thought  in  the  works  of 
the  Creator,  and  can  itself  intelligently  make  practical  ap- 
plications of  it  in  its  own  work. 

We  may  observe  here  how  close  are  our  relations  with 
the  infinite,  and  also  how  confused  are  the  common 
ideas  of  men  respecting  the  real  and  the  unreal.  When 
we  have  taught  a  child  to  comprehend  that  one  and  one 
make  two,  which  is  the  most  simple  ideal  truth,  we  have 
shown  to  that  child  a  changeless  reality,  which  had  no 
beginning  and  can  have  no  end,  which  is  universal  or  om- 
nipresent, and  which  transcends  both  space  and  time ;  a 
truth,  moreover,  which  exists  as  a  reality,  quite  indepen- 
dent of  any  material  object  to  which  it  can  be  applied,  or 


98  THE  REVELATION  OF  IDEAL  TRUTH. 

of  any  finite  mind  by  which  it  can  be  comprehended. 
And  yet  we  do  not  apply  the  term  "real"  to  this  and 
similar  objects,  but  we  reserve  this  term  for  objects  of 
sense,  which  change  their  forms,  and  as  such  objects  per- 
ish in  a  moment. 

In  our  relations  to  what  we  call  material  objects,  and 
thus  far  also  in  our  relations  to  objects  of  mental  percep- 
tion, we  observe  a  fact  which,  by  necessary  analogy,  we 
conclude  to  be  universal.  This  fact  is,  that  we  are  capa- 
ble of  perceiving  these  objects  only  in  a  small  degree  of 
detail  or  completeness,  dependent  on  our  own  powers.  In 
the  former  case  we  are  able,  to  a  certain  extent,  to  aug- 
ment our  perceptive  powers  artificially ;  and  in  the  latter 
case  these  powers  are  capable  of  different  degrees  of  devel- 
opment in  different  individuals. 

Thus,  the  limitation  to  the  sights  we  can  see,  or  the 
sounds  we  can  hear,  is  found  in  the  limited  sensibility  of 
our  organs  of  sight  and  hearing.  These  organs  are  sensi- 
tive to  the  vibrations  or  pulsations  of  light  and  air  only 
within  certain  limits.  Matter  may  become  completely 
invisible  to  us :  a  fact  of  which  air,  water,  and  glass,  as 
well  as  the  disappearance  of  many  substances  in  solution, 
afford  familiar  examples.  Perhaps  the  limitation  of  our 
senses  is  most  impressively  shown  when  we  come  to 
employ  the  higher  powers  of  the  microscope.  Objects 
then  appear  to  us  merely  as  they  would  do  if  they  were, 
in  one  plane,  just  so  much  larger  than  they  really  are ; 
and  not  the  least  progress  is  made  towards  a  knowledge 
of  the  constitution  of  matter.  For  illustration,  we  may 
magnify  a  diatom,  say,  twenty-five  hundred  diameters, 
which  gives  a  superficial  enlargement  of  more  than  six 
million  times,  and  the  illumination  of  the  object  and  the 
definition  of  our  instrument  may  be  such,  that  the  object 
is  seen  with  brilliant  distinctness ;  but,  when  viewed  by 


THE  REVELATION  OF  IDEAL  TRUTH.  99 

reflected  light,  the  minute  portion  of  the  surface  that  is 
seen  appears  as  substantial  as  the  surface  of  a  shell  in  our 
cabinet.  So,  also,  the  germs  of  all  living  things  and 
beings,  of  all  vegetable  and  animal  life,  although  these 
must  differ  from  each  other  so  extremely,  appear  to  us 
absolutely  the  same.  Until  their  growth  and  develop- 
ment have  reached  a  stage  at  which  their  distinctive 
features  come  within  the  range  of  our  assisted  vision,  the 
microscope  reveals  nothing  by  which  we  can  distinguish 
between  them.  In  observing  such  objects  we  cannot 
avoid  a  sensation  of  awe,  as  we  realize  that  infinity  is 
before  us,  that  it  is  before  us  everywhere,  and  that  all  tne 
operations  of  nature  are  carried  on  in  recesses,  into  which 
it  is  not  possible  that,  while  in  the  body,  we  shall  ever 
penetrate. 

So,  also,  with  respect  to  ideal  truth,  considered  as  a 
whole.  Our  perception  of  this  varies  in  degree,  according 
to  the  development  of  our  perceptive  powers  in  this 
direction.  I  understand,  we  will  suppose,  a  little  of 
geometry.  I  can  see  clearly  enough  that  the  three 
interior  angles  of  any  possible  triangle  are  equal  to  two 
right  angles.  Many  propositions  equally  simple  are  plain 
to  me.  I  perceive  their  necessary  character.  If,  how- 
ever, one  talks  to  me  in  the  language  of  fluxions,  he 
speaks  in  an  unknown  tongue.  No  corresponding  images 
present  themselves  in  my  consciousness.  But  since  the 
time  of  Newton  there  have  been  discovered  still  higher 
methods  of  mathematical  analysis,  which  the  mighty  mind 
that  developed  fluxions  did  not  reach.  It  is  well  under- 
stood that  there  is  in  reality  no  limit  to  the  science  of 
mathematics ;  but  that  for  us  such  a  limit  exists  in  the 
limited  power  of  our  minds. 

We  conclude  this  paper  with  the   following  observa- 
tions: 


100  THE  REVELATION  OF  IDEAL  TRUTH. 

First. — Two  modes  of  revelation  have  now  been  consid- 
ered, one  through  our  physical  senses,  the  other  to  the 
spirit  directly,  without  the  employment  of  any  media  for 
this  purpose.  These  two  modes  of  relevation  are  quite 
distinct  from  each  other.  Each  is  directly  adapted  to  the 
nature  of  the  objects  which  are  revealed  through  it.  Both 
alike  result  in  producing  in  consciousness  distinct  images 
of  the  objects,  so  far  as  the  revelation  of  them  is  made  to 
us. 

Second. — Acquaintance,  in  any  degree,  with  the  first  of 
these  two  classes  of  ^bjects  does  not  give  the  power  to 
affirm  any  thing  whatever  respecting  objects  of  the  second 
class.  The  attempt  to  do  so  would  be  regarded  as  an 
absurd  presumption.  No  one  ever  thought  of  such  a 
thing  as  to  assume  that  his  skill  in  perceiving  material 
things  could  give  him  a  warrant  for  saying,  or  for  believ- 
ing, that  any  ideal  or  spiritual  object  had  no  existence, 
because  he  could  not  see  it. 

Third. — The  complete  reality  of  all  things,  whatever  be 
their  nature,  is  something  far  beyond  our  power  to  com- 
prehend. In  other  words,  whatever  may  be  the  mode  in 
which  these  realities  are  revealed,  such  revelation  is  made 
to  us,  or  can  be  received  by  us,  only  in  a  partial  degree,  a 
degree  ample,  indeed,  for  all  our  possible  uses,  and  ample 
also  for  the  employment  of  all  our  powers,  but,  in  every 
case,  bearing  only  a  small  relation  to  the  unrevealed 
reality. 

FonrtJi. — The  perception  or  the  realization  of  the  partial 
nature  of  this  revelation  comes  to  the  mind  gradually,  as 
it  progresses  in  development.  In  every  case  this  percep- 
tion is  most  clear  to  those  whose  acquaintance  with  the 
particular  subject  is  most  profound. 

None  will  question  the  correctness  of  these  statements. 
Each  is  sufficiently  obvious.  The  second  one  especially 


THE  REVELATION  OF  IDEAL  TRUTH.  IOI 

may  be  regarded  as  an  axiom.  The  importance  of  all  of 
them  will  appear  in  subsequent  papers.  We  shall  have 
occasion  to  observe  their  application  to  subjects  of  the 
highest  nature ;  applications  which,  when  the  universal 
character  of  these  propositions  comes  to  be  apprehended, 
the  mind  naturally,  and  indeed  necessarily,  makes. 


MATERIALISM. 


THE  subject  of  materialism  lies  here  right  in  our  way, 
and  demands  attention  before  we  advance  to  consider  the 
revelation  of  the  spiritual  realities  of  force,  truth,  beauty, 
and  love.  Materialism  is  the  manifestation  of  the  blind- 
ness of  physical  science  to  the  real  nature  of  the  very 
truth  which  it  cultivates, — a  nature  which  is  wholly  spir- 
itual. Materialism  is  indeed  strongly  resisted  by  many 
scientific  observers,  in  whom  zeal  and  eminence  in  various 
paths  of  experimental  research  are  found  united  with  deep 
spirituality.  In  spite,  however,  of  the  growing  influence 
of  such  minds,  scientific  thought  still  remains  to  a  large 
extent  materialistic.  There  are  several  reasons  why  this 
was  to  be  expected. 

Materialism  consists  essentially  in  limiting  thought, 
more  or  less  closely,  to  objects  of  sense,  that  first  arrest 
the  attention.  Our  relations  with  the  physical  creation 
are  so  intimate,  the  changes  that  matter  has  undergone 
in  time  past,  and  those  which  it  undergoes  under  our 
observation,  and  under  our  own  hands,  are  of  such  imme- 
diate and  practical  importance,  and  the  useful  properties 
of  its  innumerable  forms  are  so  varied,  and  so  essen- 
tial to  our  wants,  that  attention  is  naturally  first  drawn 
to,  and  occupied  by,  these  more  obvious  features,  before 
it  can  penetrate  to  the  spiritual  realities  which  are  mani- 
fested through  them. 


MA  TERIA  LISM.  1 03 

Then,  again,  the  study  of  the  phenomena  which  nature 
presents  in  its  many  scrolls,  forever  being  unrolled,  de- 
mands minute  observation  and  long-continued  fixedness 
of  thought ;  and  so  the  tendency  of  this  study  is,  espe- 
cially at  first,  to  render  the  mind  indisposed,  and  in  some 
cases  positively  unable;  to  look  with  any  concern  beyond 
a  field  which  it  sees  to  be  so  important  and  so  boundless. 

Undoubtedly  the  chief  reason  for  the  present  abnormal 
influence  of  scientific  pursuits  is  their  novelty.  Physical 
science  is  the  birth  of  yesterday.  We  are  in  the  midst  of 
its  discoveries.  The  attitude  of  the  scientific  mind  is  to  a 
great  degree  that  of  the  learner,  absorbed  in  details,  and 
to  whom  as  yet  these  details  are  every  thing. 

So  it  results  that  the  legitimate  spiritual  influence  of 
the  physical  creation  is  often  felt  the  least  by  those  who 
are  especially  devoted  to  its  study.  On  the  one  hand,  the 
tendency  of  all  such  investigations  is  to  cultivate  a  devo- 
tion to  truth  for  its  own  sake,  to  develop  a  spirit  of  dispas- 
sionate inquiry  and  conscientious  fidelity,  and  to  form 
habits  of  close  discrimination.  But,  on  the  other  hand, 
the  necessity  for  following  nature  into  deeper  and  deeper 
recesses  exercises  the  mind  in  considering  the  minute 
rather  than  the  great,  the  particular  rather  than  the  uni- 
versal, in  analyzing  rather  than  in  combining ;  and  so  the 
tendency  is  to  fix  the  attention  upon  what  appear  as 
material  things,  which  address  the  mind  through  the 
organs  of  sense,  and  which  can  be  measured  and  weighed, 
as  if  these  things  were  themselves  the  ultimate  subjects  of 
thought. 

Thus  there  comes  to  be  shown  still  by  many  devotees 
of  physical  science  a  remarkable  willingness  to  grind  in 
the  prison-house  of  phenomena.  Hence  also  comes  the 
disposition  to  ignore,  as  subjects  for  scientific  inquiry,  the 
spiritual  realities  that  are  manifested  through  all  physical 


1 04  MA  TERIA  LISM. 

forms  of  being,  and  also  the  spiritual  perception  through 
which  those  realities  are  made  known  to  us.  There  are, 
however,  many  indications  that  a  decided  change  in  this 
respect  is  imminent. 

Respecting  the  essential  nature  of  what  we  call  matter, 
we  are  wholly  ignorant.  Taking  its  forms,  as  these  are 
presented  to  our  senses,  we  have  resolved  combination 
after  combination,  until  our  means  of  analysis  have  failed; 
and  in  this  way  we  have  arrived  at  what  we  term  "  ele- 
ments." Observing  the  reverse  of  this  process,  as  it  goes 
on  in  nature,  we  find  these  supposed  elements  combining 
with  one  another  in  invariable  modes,  and  then  we  see  the 
compounds  thus  formed  combining  with  each  other,  or 
separating,  so  that  their  constituents  may  enter  into  dif- 
ferent combinations ;  all  in  obedience  to  forces  which  are 
revealed  only  in  these  effects.  Thus  there  is  presented  to 
us  a  wide  diversity  of  forms  and  properties  of  matter, 
within  what  we  term  the  inorganic  creation. 

Then,  under  the  power  of  another  class  of  forces,  more 
mysterious  still,  we  see  these  elements  and  their  com- 
pounds entering  into  new  combinations  of  a  far  more 
complicated  nature,  and  in  these  combinations  exhibiting 
forms  and  properties  far  more  varied  and  remarkable. 
Now  there  appear  organisms,  activities  some  of  which 
come  within  the  reach  of  our  observation,  growth,  and 
reproduction,  followed,  after  a  longer  or  a  shorter  period, 
by  decomposition  and  a  return  to  inorganic  forms  of 
being. 

In  this  stage  we  witness  the  united  and  concurrent 
action  of  all  physical  agencies,  as  light,  including  rays 
that  do  not  affect  our  visual  organs,  heat,  the  gases  which 
compose  and  which  are  contained  in  the  atmosphere, 
water,  and  mineral  forms  of  matter,  each  one  performing 
its  necessary  function,  and  all  harmoniously  cooperating 


MA  TERIAL1SM.  IO5 

in  the  work  of  clothing  the  earth  with  the  varied  forms  of 
vegetable  life. 

And  now  there  is  seen  a  greater  wonder.  When  matter 
has  reached  these  higher  combinations,  and  has  become 
organized  under  the  action  of  the  vegetative  forces,  then, 
and  not  until  then,  it  becomes  endowed  with  the  power  to 
sustain  animal  life ;  and  in  its  more  highly  organized 
forms,  as,  for  example,  the  fruit  and  not  the  wood,  the 
grain  and  not  the  stalk,  the  flesh  and  not  the  bone  or  the 
hide,  it  is  adapted  to  support  the  life  of  man. 

In  thus  sustaining  animal  existence,  matter  yields 
obedience  to  a  still  higher  class  of  forces,  and  enters  into 
additional  combinations  of  a  still  more  complicated  nature, 
and  organisms  of  a  different  and  higher  character  appear. 
Now  there  come  forth  beings,  with  consciousness  and 
mental  activities  and  purposes  and  character. 

As  in  vegetable  life,  so  here  also,  the  submission  that 
matter  yields  to  the  higher  forces  is  only  temporary,  and 
a  constant  tendency  appears  to  return  to  inorganic  forms. 
In  animal  life  we  witness  again  the  successive  phenomena 
of  growth  and  decay  of  the  individual,  while  the  species  is 
perpetuated  by  reproduction. 

It  is  to  be  observed  that  in  animate  being  there  are  mani- 
fested two  distinct  orders  of  force.  The  first  of  these 
consists  of  the  merely  vital  forces,  which  sustain  animal  ex- 
istence, independently  of  volition  and  even  of  conscious- 
ness. The  second  comprises  the  conscious  and  voluntary 
activities  which  supervene  to  the  merely  animal  existence. 
The  latter  forces  are  of  a  nature  higher  than  the  former, 
as  those  are  higher  than  the  vegetative  forces,  and  as  those 
in  turn  are  higher  than  the  forces  that  are  manifested  in 
inorganic  being.  Thus  we  have  presented  to  us  four  dis- 
tinct classes  or  orders  of  force,  which  together  constitute 
a  series,  ascending  by  high  and  abrupt  steps.  But  all 


106  MATERIALISM. 

alike  manifest  themselves  only  through  matter.  And,  so 
far  as  we  are  yet  able  to  discover,  the  same  elements 
reside  in  each  of  the  forms  of  being,  and  constitute  the 
rock,  and  the  tree,  and  the  bird,  and  man  endowed  with 
intelligence  to  observe  them  all. 

One  would  expect  that,  surrounded  by  these  wonders, 
himself  the  crowning  wonder,  man  would  be  profoundly 
impressed  with  a  sense  of  the  superficial  character  of  the 
little  that  he  can  know,  and  of  the  infinite  depth  of  that 
knowledge  which  is  hidden  from  him.  Upon  many  minds, 
indeed,  this  effect  is  produced  in  different  degrees,  but  it 
is  remarkable  how  many  thinking  men  exhibit  an  inclina- 
tion, more  or  less  decided,  to  rest  satisfied  with  that  which 
they  imagine  they  can  understand,  and  with  repeating  the 
very  words  they  have  been  taught,  and  to  make  these  the 
boundary  of  their  thought  and  interest.  Inquire  of  such 
a  person,  for  example,  respecting  that  mystery,  the  cause 
that  determines  the  colors  of  bodies,  and  he  will  explain  to 
you,  as  it  has  been  explained  to  him,  that  each  body  ab- 
sorbs the  other  rays  of  light,  and  reflects  only  rays  of  the 
color  which  it  appears  to  have.  His  own  questioning  is 
satisfied,  and  so  he  supposes  that  he  has  told  all  about  it. 
In  the  present  state  of  knowledge  this  is,  indeed,  all  that 
can  be  said ;  but  how  can  any  one  imagine  that,  in  saying 
this,  he  has  said  any  thing,  compared  with  what  would  be 
a  full  explanation  of  these  phenomena  ? 

The  atomic  theory  constitutes  the  present  bulwark  of 
materialism.  This  theory,  proposed  by  Dr.  Dalton,  in  the 
early  part  of  the  present  century,  as  explanatory  of  chemi- 
cal action,  is  the  work  of  a  comprehensive  mind,  and  con- 
stitutes a  great  step  in  advance  of  the  previous  condition 
of  science.  It  has  accounted,  or  has  appeared  to  do  so, 
for  all  observed  phenomena,  with  one  important  excep- 
tion. This  is,  the  change  of  properties,  or  the  appearance 


MA  TERIA  LISM.  I O/ 

of  new  properties,  that  takes  place  when  different  sub- 
stances combine  with  each  other.  Up  to  this  point  only, 
the  claim  is  true,  that  this  "  is  the  only  theory  which  has 
as  yet  succeeded  in  giving  an  intelligible  explanation  of 
the  facts." 

As  held  at  the  present  day,  this  theory  is,  briefly,  that 
each  one  of  the  assumed  elemental  forms  of  matter  con- 
sists of  material  atoms,  of  definite  forms  and  dimensions, 
indestructible  and  indivisible,  and  that  these  atoms  are 
separated  from  each  other,  even  in  the  most  dense  sub- 
stances, by  mensurable  distances,  which  are  fixed  by  an 
equilibrium  of  attracting  and  repelling  forces ;  that  be- 
tween the  atoms  of  many  different  substances  there  exist 
attractions,  varying  greatly  in  degree,  but  which  are  always 
the  same  between  the  atoms  of  the  same  two  elements ; 
that  when  the  atoms  of  different  elements  are  brought 
together,  under  conditions  favorable  to  their  union,  these 
atoms  exercise  selection  and  choice,  and  those  which  have 
the  strongest  affinity  for  each  other  unite  in  definite  pro- 
portions, and  so  form  what  are  termed  molecules,  which 
in  their  aggregation  appear  as  compound  substances ;  and 
finally,  that  these  molecules  also  combine  with  one  an- 
other in  endlessly  varied  ways,  and  that  by  these  combi- 
nations of  atoms  and  molecules  the  whole  inorganic  and 
organic  creation  is  constituted. 

The  atoms  must  be  exceedingly  minute,  so  minute,  in- 
deed, that  even  those  molecules  which  comprise  the 
greatest  number  of  atoms,  as,  for  example,  those  which 
constitute  the  most  highly  organized  forms  of  matter,  are 
themselves  so  small,  as  to  be,  not  merely  beyond  the 
power  of  the  microscope  to  discover  them,  but  beyond  its 
power  to  make  any  sensible  progress  toward  their  dis- 
covery. 

The  atoms  were  at  one  time  described  as  being  infinitely 


IOS  MATERIALISM. 

small,  whatever  that  might  mean.  Latterly  some  defi- 
niteness  has  been  attempted  respecting  their  dimensions. 
For  example,  the  smallest  drop  of  water  that  can  be  dis- 
tinguished in  the  microscope  is  about  -g-jj-g-jj-^  of  an  inch 
in  diameter,  and  it  is  said  that  each  one  of  these  drops  of 
water  contains  about  8,OOO  millions  of  molecules.  The 
molecules  are  believed,  moreover,  to  be  small  relatively  to 
the  spaces  which  separate  them,  and  in  these  spaces  to  be 
in  a  state  of  ceaseless  vibration.  These  vibrations  are 
considered  to  be  the  cause  of  the  phenomenon  which  we 
term  heat.  It  is  supposed  that  the  force  or  amplitude  of 
the  vibrations  determines  the  degree  of  heat,  and  that 
the  complete  cessation  of  them  would  be  the  absolute 
cold.  These  are  the  leading  features  of  this  celebrated 
theory.  The  manner  in  which  it  seems  to  account  for  the 
phenomena  of  heat,  both  sensible  and  latent,  has  been 
regarded  as  affording  strong  confirmation  of  its  truth. 

Our  advance  in  knowledge  is,  of  necessity,  made  one 
step  at  a  time.  These  steps  must  often  be  separated  by 
long  intervals,  and  each  one,  when  taken,  naturally  ap- 
pears to  many  minds  to  be  the  last.  The  atomic  theory 
was  a  great  step,  and  the  philosophic  mind  has  rested  upon 
it  for  a  time  proportionately  long.  But  the  world  is  now 
prepared  for  another  step.  This  theory  does  not  get  be- 
yond mechanical  divisibility.  It  encourages,  and  probably 
grew  out  of,  the  disposition  to  contemplate  the  atom 
rather  than  the  force.  In  the  material  atom  it  fixes  a 
point  of  beginning,  which,  though  far  removed  from  our 
sight,  is  quite  within  our  comprehension,  for  it  is  our  own 
conception. 

An  amusing  illustration  of  the  limitation  of  philosophic 
thought  to  the  material  atom,  and  of  the  satisfaction 
which  our  education  enables  us  to  derive  from  what  is  in 
reality  utterly  unsatisfying,  is  afforded  in  those  numerous 


MA  TER1A  LISM.  '  09 

cases,  in  which  the  same  element  or  compound  constitutes 
two  or  more  substances,  which  have  entirely  different 
characters.  Chemists  tell  us  that  in  these  different  sub- 
stances the  atoms  or  the  molecules  are  differently  arranged, 
so  as  to  constitute  geometric  figures  of  different  forms, 
and  they  suppose,  or  at  least  appear  to  do  so,  that  they 
have  thus  explained  the  whole  matter.  It  is  obvious  that 
on  the  assumed  data  of  material  atoms,  and  of  the  forma- 
tion of  all  substances  by  the  assembling  together  of  these 
atoms,  or  of  the  molecules  formed  by  their  union,  this  is 
the  only  thing  there  is  to  be  said  ;  and  it  is  equally  obvious 
that  this  bald  guesswork  affords  no  explanation  at  all, 
and  that  these  phenomena  point  to  something  far  beyond 
the  limits  of  our  present  knowledge,  as  their  cause. 

All  analogies  are  opposed  to  the  doctrine  of  material 
atoms.  Let  us  first  apply  to  this  doctrine  the  analogies 
that  are  furnished  by  mechanical  science.  This  science 
teaches  us  to  look  with  extreme  distrust  upon  any  thing 
that  is  the  creation  of  our  own  minds.  Whenever,  in  the 
progress  of  mechanical  development,  our  conceptions  are 
brought  to  the  test  of  actual  experiment  and  observation, 
we  have  seen  that  they  are  almost  invariably  shown  to  be 
illusions.  In  almost  every  case,  we  find  that  we  had  not 
reached  the  bottom  of  the  subject.  The  history  of  mechani- 
cal progress  is  a  history  of  surprises  and  disenchantments. 
This  experience  in  mechanics  is  so  nearly  a  uniform  one, 
that  the  engineer  is  compelled  to  reason  in  this  way  with 
respect  to  the  notion  of  material  atoms :  "  Is  this  a  con- 
ception formed  respecting  that  which  lies  wholly  beyond 
the  reach  of  our  observation  ?  Yes.  Then  there  is  no 
reasonable  probability  that  it  can  be  true.  Unknown  con- 
ditions are  sure  to  exist,  and  these,  if  known,  would  almost 
certainly  show  the  conception  to  be  an  idle  one." 

We  are  in  fact  mere  tyros  in  knowledge.     How  absurd 


I  10  MA  TERIALISM. 

then  to  suppose  that  we  can  form  a  correct  conception  of 
the  ultimate  condition  of  what  we  call  matter.  In  every 
research,  we  soon  arrive  at  a  point  where  our  powers  fail. 
It  is  a  general  observation  that,  as  the  path  of  knowledge 
widens,  it  grows  fainter  also,  until  it  becomes  lost  in  im- 
penetrable mystery. 

Chemists  have  found  sixty-six  substances  that  they  can- 
not resolve,  and  so  it  has  generally  been  assumed  that 
these  cannot  be  resolved,  but  are  the  elemental  forms  of 
matter,  constituting  a  good  solid  foundation  of  all  things, 
— substantial  starting-points  in  the  search  after  physical 
truth.  • 

One  cannot  help  being  reminded  of  Fahrenheit,  who 
first  constructed  a  mercury  thermometer,  about  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  years  ago,  and  who,  as  is  supposed,  himself 
believed,  and  at  any  rate  induced  scientific  men  of  that  day 
to  accept  the  idea,  that  he  had  found  the  absolute  cold, 
which  point  he  named  zero.  This  fitly  illustrates  the  ab- 
surdity of  assuming  as  absolute,  points  which  really  mark 
nothing  except  the  present  limitation  of  our  knowledge. 

There  is  in  truth  no  warrant  for  the  belief  that  we 
have  arrived  at  any  primal  element.  It  is  unphilosophical 
to  suppose  that  the  process  of  combination,  which  we  be- 
hold extended  to  such  extreme  complexity,  with  the  mani- 
festation at  each  successive  step  of  properties  more  and 
more  astonishing,  actually  begins  at  a  definite  point  which 
we  have  ascertained,  and  that  the  ultimate  forms  of  all 
things  are  thus  brought  within  our  comprehension. 

In  fact  the  philosophic  mind  is  already  showing  signs  of 
outgrowing  this  belief.  We  seem  likely  to  pass  through 
this  to  a  higher  stage  of  knowledge  before  very  long.  In- 
quirers are  beginning  to  search  after  the  unit  atom,  with 
a  strong  probability  that  the  inquiry  will  lead,  as  many  a 
one  has  done  before,  to  results  of  a  nature  quite  unex- 


MA  TER1A  L1SM.  Ill 

pected.  The  resolution  of  any  supposed  principal  element 
would  be  a  blow  to  the  atomic  theory;  not  that  the  belief 
in  material  atoms  could  not  be  extended  so  as  to  embrace 
such  new  conditions,  but  the  confidence  of  philosophers 
in  all  such  assumptions  would  be  lost,  as  unquestionably 
it  ought  to  be. 

We  have  considered  the  existence  of  the  atom,  or  of  the 
ultimate  indivisible  unit  of  matter,  to  be  an  assumption. 
It  is,  however,  rather  a  conclusion  from  another  assump- 
tion. This  latter  assumption  is,  that  force  can  be  exerted 
only  between  bodies.  Men  had  observed  that  the  earth 
attracts  falling  bodies,  that  the  magnet  attracts  particles 
of  iron,  and  that  the  non-conductor,  when  electrically 
excited,  attracts  or  repels  the  feather,  and  they  naturally 
extended  this  idea,  so  as  to  embrace  a  similar  action  far 
removed  from  their  sight.  They  assume  that  there  also 
some  material  thing  must  exist,  to  attract  and  fo  be 
attracted.  This  analogy  is  still  clung  to,  and  men  profess 
to  be  satisfied  with  it,  although  ft  is  obvious  that  the 
phenomena  which  are  presented  in  chemical  action  are 
only  suggested  in  the  most  general  way  by  attractions 
which  act  through  sensible  distances. 

With  respect  to  this  subject,  it  is  to  be  observed,  that 
three  phenomena  are  known,  namely,  force,  choice,  which 
is  termed  by  chemists  elective  affinity,  and  uniformity  of 
action.  To  these  there  must  be  added  the  properties  that 
are  exhibited  by  the  supposed  elemental  forms  of  matter, 
and  by  their  various  combinations.  These  properties, 
which  vary  with  each  elemental  or  compound  substance, 
are  evidently  designed.  They  are  in  all  cases  essential  to 
subsequent  effects  produced.  Each  one  contributes  to 
some  ultimate  result.  They  cannot,  therefore,  be  con- 
ceived to  be  accidental.  Only  one  alternative  remains. 
They  indicate  a  purpose. 


112  MA  TERIA  LISM. 

Four  realities,  then,  certainly  exist.  These  are  force, 
choice,  uniformity  of  action,  and  a  purpose  that  directs 
every  act.  The  first  three  of  these  reveal  themselves 
directly.  Indeed  they  are  assumed  in  the  argument  for 
the  existence  of  the  atom.  The  last  one  we  have  seen  to 
be  manifested  no  less  certainly.  Now  these  four  realities 
are  not  only  certain  ;  they  are  also  sufficient.  The  mate- 
rial atom  is  superfluous.  Faraday's  definition  of  the  atom, 
as  a  point  of  force,  has  the  merit  of  not  assuming  the 
creation  of  our  own  fancy  to  be  a  reality.  The  fact  that 
we  are  not  able  to  form  a  definite  conception  of  a  point  of 
force  increases  the  probability  that  the  expression  may 
contain  the  truth. 

The  belief  in  the  existence  of  the  material  atom  has, 
in  fact,  no  other  basis  than  our  education  and  habit  of 
thought,  or  rather,  our  habit  of  not  thinking.  This  belief 
is  pretty  strongly  intrenched  in  authority.  The  general 
idea  of  atoms,  as  self-existent  entities,  is  derived  from 
heathen  philosophy,  and  mankind  have  been  more  or  less 
familiar  w:.th  it  for  twenty-three  hundred  years.  Science, 
however,  pays  no  regard  to  human  authority,  and  if  this 
be  disregarded,  the  case  stands  thus:  In  the  behavior  of 
what  we  call  matter,  we  observe  only  force,  choice,  uni- 
formity of  action,  and  purpose.  These  four  realities  are 
established  by  conclusive  evidence.  They  are  manifested 
through  all  material  forms  of  being.  From  them  men 
deduce  diametrically  opposite  conclusions.  They  are 
viewed  by  each  mind  in  the  light  that  is  determined  by 
the  general  direction  of  its  own  thought. 

On  the  one  hand,  the  materialist,  who  insists  upon 
limiting  his  thought,  as  closely  as  possible,  to  that 
which  is  immediately  disclosed  to  him  through  his 
physical  organs  of  perception — which  he  can  measure  or 
weigh,  and  which  he  tries  to  believe  that  he  can  under- 


MA  TERIA  LISM.  1 1 3 

stand, — carries  on  his  subdivision  of  matter  to  the  atom. 
Here  he  rests.  This  imaginary  thing  becomes  for  him 
the  ultimate  and  the  only  reality.  Force,  choice,  and 
uniformity  of  action,  all  which  he  admits,  are  viewed  by 
him  merely  as  incidents  of  the  atom.  These  realities, 
which  even  to  his  own  mind  are  fully  established,  yet, 
simply  because  they  cannot  in  their  nature  be  seen  and 
handled,  be  measured  or  weighed,  are  regarded  by  him  as 
only  incidental  to  that,  of  the  existence  of  which  he  has 
no  evidence  at  all,  which  he  only  imagines  to  exist.  Pur- 
pose is  something  that  the  materialist  finds  it  difficult  to 
attribute  to  the  atom,  and  so  he  shuts  his  eyes  to  it.  He 
can  see  properties  of  matter.  He  is  compelled,  moreover, 
to  admit  that  all  physical  results  are  dependent  upon  the 
possession  by  different  forms  of  matter  of  these  distin- 
guishing properties.  But  he  can't  see  any  purpose ;  and 
this  for  no  reason  except  that  he  cannot  attribute  purpose 
to  the  atom. 

Singularly  enough,  while  the  attention  of  this  class  of 
physicists  has  been  fixed  on  material  atoms  so  long,  that 
it  has  come  to  be  all  the  same  as  if  they  saw  them,  while 
these  atoms  are  as  real  to  them  as  witches  are  to  Africans, 
they  are  in  reality  an  impertinence  in  the  atomic  theory 
itself,  so  far  as  this  theory  is  scientific.  The  only  fact 
that  is  established  by  observation  is,  that  substances 
combine  with  one  another  in  multiple  proportions.  All 
beyond  this  is  guesswork,  or  the  opposite  of  science.  It 
must  in  fairness  be  stated,  that  this  is  all  that  it  is  claimed 
to  be.  We  have  the  law  of  multiple  proportions,  and  on 
this  law  is  based  the  theory  of  material  atoms. 

So  much  for  the  attitude  of  the  materialist.  On  the 
other  hand,  those  inquirers  who  in  observing  employ  also 
their  spiritual  apprehension,  whose  perceptions  are  not 
limited  to  sensible  forms,  but  who  are  able  also  to  see  the 


1 14  MA  TERIALISM. 

spiritual  realities  which  are  contained  within  and  are  mani- 
fested through  these  forms,  perceive,  clearly  enough,  that 
we  cannot  rationally  conceive  of  force,  or  choice,  or  uni- 
formity of  action,  any  more  than  we  can  conceive  of 
purpose,  as  any  thing  less  than  attributes  of  a  Being. 
They  reason  from  their  own  consciousness.  Respecting 
purpose  and  choice,  they  see  at  once  that  these  are 
equally  functions  of  mind  ;  and  that  neither  one,  and 
one  no  more  than  the  other,  can  be  conceived  to  be  a 
property  of  matter.  Uniformity  of  action  is  seen  by 
them  to  be  nothing  less  than  uniformity  of  purpose,  joined 
with  absolute  power  of  accomplishment.  Force,  when 
exerted  by  ourselves,  is  the  expression  of  our  wills  ;  and 
so  the  only  conception  of  force  in  nature  that  can  be 
formed  by  such  minds  is,  that  it  is  the  manifestation  of 
a  will. 

As,  therefore,  the  phenomena  of  nature  are  contem- 
plated by  minds  which  are  capable  of  this  spiritual  insight, 
the  presence  and  activity  of  an  infinite  and  changeless 
Being  appears  as  the  demonstrated  truth.  All  those 
things  which  they  observe  reveal  the  attributes  of  such 
a  Being.  There  is  no  point  at  which  such  minds  can  rest, 
at  which  their  questionings  can  find  intelligible  answers, 
until  they  rest  in  the  conception  of  such  a  personal  Being. 
This  is  the  view  towards  which  leaders  of  scientific  thought 
appear  now  to  be  generally  tending. 

In  "  The  New  Chemistry  "  Cooke  says  :  "  The  theories 
by  which  we  attempt  to  explain  these  facts,  and  group 
them  in  our  scientific  systems,  are,  at  the  best,  only 
guesses  at  truth."  "  Everywhere  in  nature  there  seems 
to  be  a  Presence,  which  not  only  imparts  power  to  these 
particles,  but  also  directs  each  particle  to  its  appointed 
place."  And  again  he  remarks  :  "  I  have  been  called  a  blind 
partisan  of  the  atomic  theory,  but  I  wish  to  declare  my  be- 


MA  TERIA  LISM.  1 1 5 

lief  that  the  atomic  theory,  beautiful  and  consistent  as  it 
appears,  is  only  a  temporary  expedient  for  representing 
the  facts  of  chemistry  to  the  mind.  I  have  the  conviction 
that  it  is  the  temporary  scaffolding  around  the  imperfect 
building,  which  will  be  removed  as  soon  as  its  usefulness 
is  passed." 

'The  development  of  the  mind,  to  whose  illumined  sight 
the  universal  presence  of  God  in  nature  becomes  obvious, 
will  be  considered  in  a  subsequent  paper,  when  this  sub- 
ject shall  be  reached  in  the  orderly  sequence  of  our 
thought.  Such  a  spiritual  insight  is,  however,  assumed 
to  be  possessed  by  the  reader,  at  least  in  some  degree, 
in  the  remarks  with  which  this  paper  will  be  concluded. 

The  theory  of  material  atoms  has  been  a  real  help,  in 
the  progress  of  the  human  mind  toward  its  full  develop- 
ment. This  theory  has  served  as  the  necessary  step,  by 
which  men  may  mount,  from  the  gross  ideas  of  matter, 
up  to  the  position  from  which  they  can  reach  forward  to 
the  truth.  By  the  contemplation  of  these  imaginary 
things,  far  removed  from  our  sight,  we  have  become,  or 
are  becoming,  gradually  prepared  for  the  reception  of  the 
awe-inspiring  truth,  of  what  has  so  aptly  been  termed 
"  the  Divine  immanence  "  in  nature,  or  the  infinite  mode 
of  the  Divine  omnipresence. 

This  truth  requires  for  its  complete  apprehension  only 
the  full  development  of  that  spiritual  perception  which, 
however  unconsciously,  we  begin  to  employ  in  the  appre- 
hension of  force.  This  same  spiritual  apprehension  will 
enable  us  to  see,  that  the  universe  of  what  we  call  matter 
is  the  infinitely  varied  manifestation,  not  of  force  only, 
but  of  all  spiritual  realities,  in  their  unity,  and  of  the  In- 
finite Being  in  whom  these  inhere  ;  and  that  the  creation 
has  its  chief  value  and  significance  for  us  as  such  manifes- 
tation. 


1 1 6  MA  TERIALISM. 

It  would  appear  safe  to  say  that  if,  at  the  commence- 
ment of  the  Christian  era,  our  present  knowledge  of  phy- 
sical truth  had  been  possessed  by  mankind,  the  Church 
would  not  have  lost,  as,  under  the  combined  influences 
of  paganism  and  barbarism,  it  did  for  so  many  centuries 
utterly  lose,  this  vital  conception  of  the  Divine  immanence 
or  indwelling,  both  in  nature  and  in  the  soul  of  man  ; 
a  conception  that  lies  at  the  bottom  of  all  right  belief, 
whether  this  belief  be  termed  scientific  or  religious.  This 
truth  seems  to  have  been  held  with  much  clearness  in  the 
earliest  Eastern  churches.  Religious  thought  is  now  slowly 
and  painfully  returning  to  it.  The  human  mind  is  gradu- 
ally approaching  nearer  to  the  perception  of  the  universal 
and  infinite  presence  of  God.1 

True  science  cannot  impose  a  limit  to  thought,  nor  toler- 
ate an  impediment  to  its  progress.  The  following  propo- 
sitions must  become  the  axioms  of  liberated  science  : 

All  spiritual  realities  are  revealed  to  man,  equally  with 
physical  realities ; 

This  revelation  is  made  in  every  manner  that  is  best 
adapted  to  the  supply  of  man's  physical  and  spiritual 
wants,  and  to  the  development  of  his  physical  and  his 
spiritual  nature  ; 

An  equal  apprehension  of  all  spiritual  realities  is  essen- 
tial to  a  correct  conception  even  of  physical  truth ; 

Of  these  spiritual  realities,  force  is  the  first  that  compels 
our  attention,  but  all  alike  are  the  manifestations  of  a 
personal  and  present  God. 

In  the  educational  work  that  shall  prepare  the  mind  for 
the  reception  of  this  true  philosophy,  mechanical  science 
must  bear  a  leading  part.  In  other  branches  of  physics 
students  may  allow  their  minds  to  dwell  on  the  fiction 
of  material  atoms,  and  may  even  regard  these  as  ultimate 

'The  expression  "the  Divine  immanence"  is  occasionally  heard  among 
theologians,  but  the  ideas  attached  to  it  are  vague  and  utterly  inadequate. 


MA  TERIA  LISM.  1 1 7 

subjects  of  thought.  But  mechanical  science  leads  the 
mind  directly  to  force.  Mechanics  is  the  first  of  the  sci- 
ences to  arrive  at  the  distinct  recognition  of  this  manifes- 
tation of  the  universal  presence ;  and  it  must  operate  pow- 
erfully to  make,  not  force  merely,  but  the  other  spiritual 
realities,  which  we  shall  see  to  be  intimately  associated 
with  force,  controlling  elements  in  determining  the  future 
direction  of  thought. 

Confining  our  attention  for  the  present  to  force,  we 
perceive  at  once  the  necessity  that  the  forces,  which  it  is 
intended  we  should  employ,  shall  be  manifested  to  us 
in  ways  that  will  enable  us  to  employ  them.  Now  from 
the  very  constitution  of  our  being  we  could  know  nothing 
about  any  forces,  except  through  just  such  concrete  em- 
bodiments of  them  as  those  which  have  actually  been 
given  to  us.  The  inconceivably  varied  ways  in  which 
forces  are  manifested  are  all  adapted  to  our  nature,  and 
to  the  service  of  our  wills  and  the  accomplishment  of 
our  purposes.  The  adaptation  of  man  and  these  mani- 
festations of  force  to  each  other  is  mutual  and  complete. 

If  only  we  are  able  to  overcome  the  influence  of  false 
education,  and  the  habit  of  using  expressions  ready  made 
in  the  place  of  thoughts,  we  shall  find  it  quite  as  easy  to 
conceive  all  bodies  to  be,  what  undoubtedly  they  really 
are,  manifestations  of  force,  in  modes  adapted  to  our  con- 
stitution and  wants,  as  it  is  to  conceive  them  to  be  aggre- 
gations of  invisible  material  atoms  held  together  by  force. 
The  real  nature  of  all  things  with  which  we  are  so  familiar 
is  certainly  wrapped  in  profoundest  mystery. 

When,  however,  we  extend  our  view,  by  the  method 
hereafter  to  be  presented,  it  will  become  apparent  that 
force  is  only  one  of  the  spiritual  realities  by  which  we  are 
environed.  It  is  believed  that  it  is  not  too  much  to  say 
that  the  universe,  as  it  is  now  shown  to  us,  presents  the 


I  1 8  MA  TERIA  LISM. 

complete  manifestation  of  all  spiritual  realities,  or  the  full 
revelation  of  the  Infinite  Being.  This  may  at  first  appear 
to  be  an  overstatement,  but  I  am  inclined  to  think  that 
it  is  the  true  one,  and  that  there  are  considerations  which, 
if  due  weight  be  given  to  them,  will  appear  conclusive  of 
its  truth. 

If  the  revelation  of  God  be  made  in  the  creation,  it  seems 
inconceivable  that  it  should  be  partially,  incompletely  or 
imperfectly  made.  The  divine  nature  must  be  a  unit,  a 
whole,  incapable  of  division  in  its  expression  ;  so  that, 
if  God  is  revealed  in  the  creation  at  all,  it  seems  a  neces- 
sary conclusion  that  he  must  be  completely  revealed. 

But  not  to  us.  Alas  !  not  to  us.  The  knowledge  of 
God,  that  we  derive  from  this  revelation,  or  the  degree  of 
this  revelation  to  us,  must  of  necessity  be  limited  by  the 
capacity  of  each  individual  to  receive  it.  A  limit  to  our 
perception  is  formed  by  the  imperfect  development  of  our 
nature  in  likeness  to  the  nature  of  God.  Our  natures  may 
be  in  a  condition  completely  abnormal,  so  as  to  repel  this 
revelation,  instead  of  admitting  it  in  even  the  least  degree. 
From  this  state  up  to  that  entirely  receptive  condition  of 
the  soul — that  perfectly  harmonious  nature — to  which  the 
presence  of  God  in  the  universe  could  be  imparted  fully,  or 
in  an  infinite  degree,  the  change  must  be  one  wholly  in  our 
own  nature,  and  not  in  the  least  a  change  in  the  revelation 
itself. 

In  accordance  with  the  universal  law  of  spiritual  percep- 
tion, by  which  like  Can  be  revealed  only  to  like,  we  are 
able  to  perceive  the  being  of  God,  and  his  presence  in  the 
universe,  only  in  that  degree  in  which  our  natures  become 
like  to  his  own.  Here  is  found  the  natural  explanation  of 
the  fact  to  which  attention  was  called  in  an  earlier  paper, 
that,  of  the  various  manifestations  of  the  divine  presence 
which  are  made  in  the  creation,  men  are  ready  enough  to 


MA  TERIALISM.  1 1 9 

recognize  those  which  they  can  conceive  of  independently, 
which  they  do  not  feel  compelled  to  regard  as  such  mani- 
festations of  God  ;  while  multitudes  remain  insensible  to 
those  other  manifestations  of  his  presence  which,  in  point 
of  fact,  are  equally  obvious  and  equally  universal,  as  well 
as  equally  necessary  to  us,  our  association  with  which 
is  just  as  close,  and  our  dependence  upon  which  is  just 
as  absolute,  but  which,  by  the  exercise  of  all  our  inge- 
nuity, we  cannot  separate  from  the  idea  of  a  personal  and 
omnipresent  Deity. 

Between  these  two  classes  of  manifestations  of  the  In- 
finite Being,  namely,  those  which  can  be  dissociated  from 
Him  in  our  thought,  and  those  which  cannot  be  so  sepa- 
rated from  Him,  physical  science,  in  the  present  stage  of 
its  growth,  has  assumed  to  draw  a  line,  and  to  limit  its 
view  exclusively  to  force. 

Our  subject,  however,  has  only  its  beginning  here.  We 
shall  enter  the  door  that  mechanical  science  opens  so 
widely,  and  within  which  lies  the  whole  realm  of  truth  in 
its  unity. 

In  presenting  the  views  above  expressed,  it  has  been 
necessary,  in  some  degree,  to  anticipate  conclusions  which 
will  be  reached  in  subsequent  papers.  This  is  to  be  re- 
gretted, but  it  seemed  unavoidable.  If  the  reader  now 
has  difficulty  in  yielding  assent  to  some  expressions,  I 
hope  that  as  he  proceeds  he  may  find  those  difficulties 
disappear. 


THE   REVELATION   OF   FORCE. 


THE  subject  of  force,  as  revealed  in  its  effects,  has 
already  been  considered.  With  the  effects  of  force  physi- 
cal science  is  concerned,  but  not  with  the  nature  of  force 
itself.  Science  defines  force  to  be  something  that  produces 
or  tends  to  produce  motion.  Tt  does  not  inquire  what 
this  something  is.  This  is  a  question  about  which  it  feels 
no  interest.  The  inquiries  of  physical  science  are  directed 
entirely  to  the  modes  and  degrees  of  the  manifestation 
of  force. 

But  there  are  other  questions  respecting  force  that  are 
to  be  asked  and  answered.  The  first  of  these  questions 
is:  How  do  we  get  our  notion  or  idea  of  force?  We  see, 
for  example,  water  lifted  and  water  falling ;  we  see  vehi- 
cles and  cars  and  boats  put  in  motion,  and  kept  in  motion, 
by  animals,  by  the  wind,  and  by  steam ;  and  with  these 
phenomena,  as  well  as  with  all  others,  we  associate  in 
our  minds  the  idea  of  force  being  exerted.  How  do  we 
get  this  idea  ? 

Our  conception  of  force  is  derived  entirely  from  our  own 
consciousness.  I  am  conscious  of  the  exertion  of  force 
myself,  in  a  great  number  of  ways.  I  observe  the  effect, 
in  imparting  motion  to  some  object,  which  is  evidently 
produced  by  each  of  these  exertions  of  force,  and  which 
effect  it  was  my  intention  to  produce  by  such  exertion. 

I  am  conscious,  also,  of  resistance  which,  in  different 


THE  REVELATION  OF  FORCE.  121 

degrees,  is  opposed  by  objects  to  my  exertion  of  force ; 
and  which  renders  it  necessary  for  me  to  exert  my  force  in 
corresponding  degrees,  in  order  to  overcome  it,  and  pro- 
duce the  motions  that  I  wish  to  impart. 

Then  I  observe  around  me  effects  being  produced,  in 
imparting  motion  to  bodies,  that  are  similar  to  the  effects 
which  I  produce  by  the  exertion  of  my  own  force.  When 
contemplating  these  effects  I  am  conscious  of  sensations 
similar  to  those  which  I  experience  when  exerting  force 
myself.  Especially  if  these  effects  are  the  same,  both  in 
kind  and  degree,  as  those  that  I  have  produced,  the  iden- 
tity of  the  sensation  is  very  noticeable. 

For  example,  by  working  the  handle  of  a  pump  I  am 
able,  with  a  certain  exertion  of  force,  to  lift  a  column  of 
water  with  a  given  velocity  from  a  given  depth.  I  see 
another  person  doing  the  same  thing.  Of  course,  I  at 
once  recognize  the  fact  that  he  is  making  the  same  effort 
that  I  was  making.  Then  I  see  the  same  thing  being  done 
by  a  windmill,  or  by  animal  power,  or  by  an  air-engine,  or 
steam-engine.  In  either  case,  by  the  same  association, 
and  by  an  equal  necessity,  I  recognize  the  fact  that  a  force 
is  being  exerted  by  the  wind,  or  the  animal,  or  the  heated 
air,  or  the  steam,  identical  with  that  which  I  had  exerted 
myself. 

For  another  example  :  I  am  taught  that  the  atmosphere 
exerts  a  pressure  of  about  14.7  Ibs.  on  each  square  inch  of 
the  surface  of  every  object  immersed  in  it.  But  if  I  try 
myself  to  lift  a  partially  exhausted  receiver  I  get  an 
impression  of  this  fact  far  more  vivid  than  any  words 
could  give  to  me.  I  compare  this  pressure  with  other 
resistances  which  I  am  accustomed  to  overcome  by  my 
own  exertion  of  force. 

These  illustrations  are  sufficient  to  show  the  fact,  that 
our  perception  of  force  is  an  act^of  recognition.  We 


122  THE  REVELATION  OF  FORCE. 

observe  an  effect,  and  we  feel  the  same  sensation  that  we 
felt  when  we  have  produced  a  similar  effect  ourselves  ; 
and  so  we  recognize  the  same  force  as  being  exerted.  It 
follows,  that  a  person  not  capable  of  exerting  force,  or 
who  had  in  fact  never  made  such  exertion,  would  not  be 
able  to  form  an  idea  of  force.  This  is  undoubtedly  true. 
One,  for  example,  who  had  never  lifted  any  thing  could 
not  form  a  conception  of  weight.  No  conception  of 
weight,  or  of  the  exertion  of  force  to  overcome  it,  has,  by 
our  supposition,  ever  been  formed  in  his  consciousness, 
that  could  be  recalled  or  revived  by  any  effect  observed. 
He  would  not  recognize  the  exertion  of  force,  and  would 
be  entirely  unconscious  of  either  force  or  resistance.  His 
perception  would  be  wholly  limited  to  the  motion  that  he 
sees.  This  is,  in  fact,  continually  the  case  with  every 
one.  Few  persons,  for  example,  can  form  any  notion, 
from  the  movements  of  a  steam-engine,  whether  any 
force  is  being  exerted  through  it  or  not.  This  cannot  be 
known  even  by  an  expert,  unless  he  observes  some  par- 
ticular part  of  the  engine  where  to  his  eye  the  amount  of 
power  transmitted  is  indicated.1 

In  the  manner  above  described,  we  form  our  primary 
conception  of  force.  We  conceive  of  it  as  an  effort, 
applied  to  overcome  a  resistance,  or  an  opposing  force ; 
such  an  effort  as  we  are  conscious  of  making  ourselves. 
But  for  this  sensation  in  consciousness,  corresponding 

1  It  has  been  already  observed,  that  the  perception  of  force  requires  a  cer- 
tain degree  of  spiritual  insight.  Corroboration  of  this  is  found  in  the  fact 
that  rude  races  have  no  proper  idea  of  weight.  They  cannot  penetrate 
beneath  the  external  appearance.  For  example,  on  the  coast  of  Africa 
tobacco  is  to-day  sold  at  wholesale  entirely  by  the  size  of  the  hogshead. 
The  prime  object  of  the  traders  is,  to  seem  to  fill  the  hogsheads  with  the 
least  possible  weight  of  tobacco.  By  ingenious  packing  they  sometimes 
succeed  so  well,  as  to  make  1,200  or  1,300  pounds  of  tobacco  appear  to  fill 
a  hogshead  that  is  capable  of  containing  1,800  pounds.  It  is  only  recently 
that  we  ourselves  have  recognized  weight  as  forming  the  true  measure  of 
quantity  in  the  case  of  grain. 


THE  REVELATION  OF  FORCE.  123 

with  that  which  we  have  felt  when  we  have  put  forth  the 
exertion  of  force  ourselves,  and  which  sensation  is  revived 
or  reproduced  when  we  witness  similar  effects,  we  could 
have  no  idea  of  force,  as  exerted  by  other  men,  by 
animals,  or  by  any  natural  agencies,  nor  of  the  resistances 
which  these  forces  are  exerted  to  overcome.  Enveloped 
in  a  universe  of  forces,  a  being  who  had  never  himself 
made  a  conscious  exertion  of  force  could  not  recognize 
them,  and  so  could  form  no  notion  of  them,  and  could 
have  no  knowledge  of  their  existence. 

This  determination  of  the  mode  of  our  perception  of 
force  is  one  of  primary  importance.  This  mode  of  percep- 
tion is  not  limited  to  force.  It  is  the  invariable  mode  of 
spiritual  perception.  We  shall  find  that  all  other  spiritual 
realities  are,  like  force,  perceived  by  recognition,  and  that 
we  are  dead  to  the  existence  of  those  of  which  we  are 
not  ourselves  capable. 

It  was  observed  respecting  the  perception  of  sensible 
objects  and  also  of  ideal  truths,  that  the  modes  of  these 
perceptions  are  precisely  adapted  to  the  natures  of  the 
objects  revealed  ;  that  in  each  case  the  mode  of  revelation 
employed  is  the  only  mode  in  which  the  revelation  of 
that  class  of  objects  could  be  made  to  us,  and  that  this 
mode  of  revelation,  to  tfa  mind  prepared  to  receive  it,  is 
conclusive  as  to  the  reality  of  the  object  revealed,  and 
also  as  to  the  correctness  of  the  mind's  apprehension  of  it. 

Attention  is  now  called  to  the  fact  that  the  same  thing 
is  true  of  the  revelation  of  force  to  us  by  recognition. 
This  is  obviously  the  only  way  in  which  we  could  receive 
this  revelation,  and  it  is  conclusive  to  our  minds.  No 
doubt  as  to  the  reality  of  force,  or  as  to  the  correctness 
of  our  notion  of  it,  ever  occurs,  or  ever  can  occur,  to  any 
one. 

We  note  further  that,  as  it  would  be  absurd  for  one 


124  THE  REVELATION  OF  FORCE. 

who  could  not  form  in  his  mind  an  image  or  conception 
of  an  abstract  truth  to  deny  its  existence,  so  it  would  be 
as  manifestly  absurd  for  one  who  had  no  conscious  ex- 
perience of  the  exertion  of  force  to  deny  the  existence  of 
force. 

Our  first  question,  How  do  we  get  our  notion  or  idea  of 
force  ?  is  now  answered,  and  we  pass  to  the  second  ques- 
tion :  What  is  force?  This  is  a  question  of  a  still  more 
serious  nature,  but  it  is  one  that  admits  of  a  definite  and 
certain  answer. 

Force  constitutes  one  of  the  quarternion  of  spiritual  re- 
alities. Truth,  Beauty,  and  Love  form  the  remaining 
sides  of  the  four-square  city.  Force  is,  however,  distin- 
guished from  truth,  beauty,  and  love  in  two  respects. 
First,  it  has  no  opposite,  and  so  has  in  itself  no  moral 
quality.  Second,  while  each  of  these  realities  is  capable 
of  different  degrees  of  manifestation,  force  is  the  only  one, 
the  degrees  of  which  are  comparable  and  measurable  with 
precision  by  man.  We  are  conscious  of  different  amounts 
or  degrees  of  force,  as  exerted  by  ourselves.  Starting 
from  these,  we  are  able,  by  mere  multiplication  or  division, 
to  express  force  in  amounts  which,  on  the  one  hand,  are 
exceedingly  minute,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  surpass  our 
own  powers  to  any  extent  whatever  ;  and  we  are  able  to 
state  and,  within  moderate  limits,  to  demonstrate  these 
relative  degrees  of  force  with  exactness. 

Forming  our  idea  of  force  in  the  manner  above  de- 
scribed, which  is  obviously  the  only  possible  manner,  we 
cannot,  except  by  violence,  dissociate  in  our  minds  the 
conception  of  force  from  the  conception  of  a  being,  by 
whom  the  force  is  exerted,  and  whose  purpose  is  accom- 
plished in  its  exertion.  Of  this  being  force  must  be  one 
form  of  manifestation.  Every  exertion  of  it  must  be  a 
direct  expression  of  his  nature.  This  we  are  conscious  is 


THE  REVELATION  OF  FORCE.  12$ 

the  case  in  every  exertion  of  force  that  is  made  by  our- 
selves, and  we  see  it  to  be  the  case  in  every  exertion  of 
force  that  is  made  by  other  men  and  by  animals.  There 
is  no  exertion  of  force  by  men  or  animals  that  we  do  not 
recognize  to  be  the  manifestation  of  spiritual  qualities,  or 
of  a  disposition. 

Concerning  force  as  exerted  by  ourselves,  we  observe 
that  it  is  not  self-active,  nor  self-directed.  It  acts  indif- 
ferently in  any  direction,  for  the  accomplishment  of  any 
purpose,  and  as  the  manifestation  of  any  disposition.  In 
order  that  it  shall  be  exerted  at  all,  there  must  exist  a 
mind,  having  a  purpose  to  be  accomplished,  and  a  dispo- 
sition to  be  manifested. 

It  is  customary  to  say  that  force,  as  exerted  by  our- 
selves, is  directed  by  the  will,  and  there  to  stop,  as  if  a 
full  explanation  had  been  given.  A  prominent  example, 
perhaps  the  most  prominent  one,  of  thought  arrested  at 
the  will,  is  afforded  by  the  Westminster  Assembly's  Cate- 
chism. Take,  for  example,  its  definition  of  the  decrees: 
"  The  decrees  of  God  are  his  eternal  purpose,  according 
to  the  counsel  of  his  will,  whereby,  for  his  own  glory,  he 
hath  foreordained  whatsoever  comes  to  pass."  This  is  re- 
markable for  its  outspoken  character  in  this  respect,  as 
well  as  for  the  assent  which  it  has  received. 

When  we  look  closely  to  find  out  what  is  meant  by  this 
expression,  that  force  is  directed  by  the  will,  we  find  that  it 
does  not  mean  any  thing.  If  we  search  to  discover  how 
much  progress  we  have  made  towards  learning  what  it  is 
that  calls  our  force  into  exercise,  and  determines  the  direc- 
tion in  which  it  shall  be  exerted,  we  cannot  find  that  we  have 
made  any  progress.  If  we  have  done  any  thing  more  than 
to  substitute  in  the  place  of  force  another  word  that,  so 
far  as  this  inquiry  is  concerned,  means  the  same  thing,  it 
will  be  found  a  very  difficult  matter  to  show  what  this  is. 


126  THE  REVELATION  OF  FORCE. 

The  will  is  just  as  indifferent  as  force.  It  needs  to  be 
called  into  activity,  and  to  have  the  direction  of  its  activity 
determined,  precisely  as  force  does.  Indeed,  force,  as  ex- 
erted by  man,  is  nothing  but  the  physical  expression  of 
his  will.  Just  as  man  receives  his  knowledge  of  the  outer 
world  through  his  physical  senses,  so  he  impresses  his  will 
upon  the  outer  world  primarily  through  his  physical 
strength.  In  the  case  of  a  being  who  does  not  act  through 
physical  organs,  will  and  force  certainly  may  be,  and  so 
far  as  we  can  see  they  must  be,  one  and  the  same  thing. 
We  have  thus  far  merely  found  and  identified,  in  the  will, 
the  spiritual  form  of  force.  It  follows  that  the  theology 
which  stops  at  the  will  gets  no  nearer  to  Go,d  than  does 
the  science  which  stops  at  force. 

We  must  go  back  of  the  will,  and  inquire  what  it  is 
that  calls  the  will  itself  into  activity,  and  determines  the 
mode  and  direction  of  its  activity.  What  is  it  that  con- 
trols and  guides  our  conduct  ?  It  will  be  answered :  Our 
conduct  is  determined  by  the  purpose  that  we  have  formed. 
Still  only  words.  Purpose  is  only  another  word  which 
means  the  same  thing.  What  has  determined  our  pur- 
pose? Why  have  we  formed  this  purpose,  rather  than 
the  opposite  one  ? 

We  are  now  driven  back  to  the  real  and  only  spring  of 
all  our  activity,  when  this  activity  is  exercised  freely. 
We  have  reached  the  ego,  the  very  /.  We  have  found 
that  which  determines  all  conduct,  and  constitutes  all 
character.  We  have  arrived  at  the  affections,  at  the 
emotional  nature,  which  is,  indeed,  the  whole  nature  of 
every  being.  Here  we  find  the  motive,  the  self-active 
and  self-directed  power.  We  have  penetrated  to  the 
engine-room,  and  have  found  what  it  is  that  makes  every- 
thing go.  Here,  at  last,  is  the  reality,  the  free  emotional 
nature  is  force.  All  that  this  word  force  has  been  em- 


THE  REVELATION  OF  FORCE.  I2/ 

ployed  to  signify,  and  to  which  the  application  of  it  is 
commonly  limited,  are  only  those  external  manifestations 
or  exertions  of  force  which  are  observable  by  us  through 
our  senses.  The  self-active  emotional  spirit  is  the  force 
itself.  It  will  be  found  that  there  is  no  voluntary  exer- 
tion of  force,  for  which  we  are  not  obliged  to  go  back  to 
our  emotional  nature,  to  love  or  hatred,  in  order  to  find 
its  primary  animating  cause  or  motive. 

This  truth  is  one  of  supreme  importance  in  a  religious 
point  of  view.  The  contrast  between  Christianity  and 
many  human  creeds  lies  in  the  fact,  that  the  former  pre- 
sents love,  while  the  latter  present  mere  will,  as  the  mo- 
tive to  the  conduct  of  God.  The  Christ  declared,  "  God 
so  loved  the  world."  It  is  doubtful  whether  the  meaning 
of  this  familiar  text  has  ever  been  apprehended.  Indeed, 
it  is  certain  that  its  full  meaning  never  can  be  appre- 
hended by  a  finite  mind.  Theologians  generally  would 
not  admit  the  truth  which  it  contains,  if  that  truth  could 
be  stated. 

In  the  light  which  is  shed  upon  this  declaration  by 
mechanical  science,  we  see  clearly  enough  that  it  cannot 
be  a  declaration  of  a  special  motive  determining  a  single 
act,  however  important  that  act  may  be  ;  but  that  it  is  the 
declaration  of  a  universal  motive,  which  expresses  itself 
alike  in  the  work  of  human  redemption,  and  in  all  the 
other  conduct  of  God.  The  advance  in  religious  thought 
which  is  now  in  progress,  consists  essentially  in  the  pas- 
sage, or  rather  in  the  penetration,  from  will  to  love,  as  the 
recognized  motive  to  all  the  Divine  conduct.  This  transi- 
tion is  by  far  the  most  important  one  that  it  is  possible  for 
the  human  mind  to  make.  In  order  that  the  love  of  God 
shall  be  rightly  apprehended,  this  love  must  be  seen,  not  only 
infinite  in  its  intensity,  but  also  in  its  changeless  universality, 
embracing  alike  every  human  being,  precisely  as  the  at- 


128  THE  REVELATION  OF  FORCE. 

traction  of  gravitation  embraces  all  matter.  This  advance 
in  religious  thought  causes  the  once  important  subject  of 
the  freedom  of  the  will  to  disappear,  as  a  subject  of  prac- 
tical moment.  It  has,  in  time  past,  been  necessary  to 
contend  earnestly  for  this  freedom,  against  the  doctrine  of 
fatalism.  Now  man's  free  moral  agency  is  regarded  as  a 
thing  of  course.  The  state  of  the  emotional  nature  is  now 
more  clearly  seen  to  be  the  single  object  of  concern.  The 
quickening  into  life  of  healthy  or  normal  spiritual  sensibili- 
ties is  felt  to  be  the  essential  thing.  Just  in  the  degree  that 
this  is  done,  must  choice,  purpose,  the  exercise  of  the  will, 
all  the  activities  of  our  nature,  receive  their  true  direction. 

Returning,  now,  to  resume  the  consideration  of  force  in 
its  physical  aspects,  it  is  obvious,  from  the  line  of  thought 
already  followed,  that  any  conception  of  force  in  nature 
which  dissociates  it  from  the  idea  of  a  Being  is  wrong.  Such 
a  conception  is  just  what  it  claims  to  be — that  is,  no  con- 
ception at  all.  It  merely  declares  force  to  be  something, 
known  only  in  its  effects.  If  any  definite  or  intelligible 
idea  of  force  in  nature  is  to  be  found,  it  must  be  that  it  is 
the  manifestation  of  the  nature  of  a  Being.  We  repeat 
the  appeal  to  our  own  consciousness.  We  are  compelled 
to  say,  that  force,  when  exerted  by  ourselves,  is  the  out- 
ward expression  of  the  real  force  within  us,  which  is  found 
in  our  affections.  These  are  the  ultimate  and  real  spring 
of  every  free  conscious  act.  Then  the  only  conception 
that  we  can  form  of  force  in  nature,  and  the  conception 
that  we  must  form  of  it,  unless  we  refuse  to  form  any  at 
all,  is,  that  this  force,  in  all  its  varied  forms,  is  the  expres- 
sion of  the  nature  of  an  Infinite  Being. 

But  our  analogy  carries  us  further  than  this.  Our  own 
affections  cannot  have  for  their  object  any  form  of  what 
we  term  matter.  This  spring  of  our  activity  is  never  ani- 
mated by  matter.  Something  beyond  matter  determines 


THE  REVELATION  OF  FORCE.  1 29 

every  exertion  of  force  by  ourselves.  Matter  may  often 
be  very  closely  associated  with  this  outward  manifestation 
of  our  spiritual  activity,  but  it  is  always  employed  only  as 
a  means,  never  as  an  end  in  itself.  The  real  object  which 
calls  our  spiritual  force  into  exercise,  and  so  determines 
the  outward  expression  of  it,  is  always  a  being,  either  our- 
self  or  another.  Our  own  activity  always  terminates  on  a 
being,  and  every  free,  conscious  act  is  performed  with  im- 
mediate or  ultimate  reference  to  a  being,  but  for  which 
being  there  would  be  no  impulse  to  its  performance,  and 
it  would  not  be  performed.  An  inquiry  as  to  the  motive 
to  any  act  will  show  this  to  be  the  case. 

We  are  obliged  to  complete  our  conception  of  force  in 
nature  in  the  same  manner,  and  to  regard  it  not  merely  as 
the  expression  of  the  nature  of  an  Infinite  Being,  but,  more- 
over, as  the  expression  of  such  a  nature  with  reference 
either  to  Himself  or  to  other  beings.  And  this  is  conduct. 
The  fundamental  importance  of  this  truth  is  perceived  at 
once.  It  changes  the  impersonal  view  of  force  in  nature 
into  a  personal  conception. 

I  shall  not  enter  further  into  this  subject  here,  but  in 
subsequent  papers  shall  endeavor  to  approach  the  same 
great  centre  from  other  directions. 

At  the  commencement  of  the  Civil  War  in  America,  the 
causes  of  it  were  discussed  in  England  in  essays  and  ad- 
dresses, in  which  allusion  to  the  institution  of  slavery  was 
carefully  avoided.  These  discussions  were  humorously 
and  happily  likened  to  the  play  of  Hamlet  with  the  part 
of  Hamlet  left  out.  So  physical  science,  with  its  objective 
methods,  like  a  child  whose  thought  does  not  get  beyond 
what  it  can  see  and  handle,  endeavors  to  comprehend  crea, 
tion  with  the  Creator  left  out.  Science  is,  however,  com- 
pelled to  admit  the  existence  of  one  reality,  force, 
which  is  not  revealed  to  us  through  our  physical  or- 


130 


THE  REVELATION  OF  FORCE. 


gans  of  perception.  Having  arbitrarily  severed  force 
from  its  necessary  connection  with  a  Being,  science  is 
obliged  to  admit  that  it  cannot  form  any  conception  of  it 
at  all. 

It  is  interesting  to  observe,  how  the  very  occupation,  to 
which  the  materialist  endeavors  to  confine  himself,  of 
weighing  matter,  of  the  existence  of  which  only  he  is  cer- 
tain, which  he  can  see  and  handle,  is  after  all  nothing  else 
than  comparing  the  degrees  of  this  first  spiritual  reality  — 
the  mystery  of  force  ;  since  weight  is  not  a  property  of 
what  he  calls  matter,  it  is  the  attraction  of  the  earth. 


THE   UNITY   OF    PHYSICAL   AND    SPIRITUAL 

TRUTH. 


Thus  far  mechanics  has  been  considered  as  the  science 
of  force.  It  is  more  than  this.  It  is  also  the  science  of 
truth.  We  have  seen  its  power  to  free  the  mind  from  all 
forms  of  authority  over  thought  and  belief,  and  to  lead 
the  inquirer  after  truth  directly  to  its  source.  Now  we 
have  to  observe  its  influence  in  a  somewhat  different  re- 
spect. It  will  be  shown  to  render  valuable  aid,  perhaps  it 
should  be  regarded  as  indispensable  aid,  towards  the  true 
and  healthy  development  of  our  spiritual  being.  It  does 
this  by  disclosing  the  essential  unity  of  physical  and 
spiritual  truth,  and  rendering  it  obvious  that  truth  in  its 
unity  can  be  apprehended  correctly  only  -by  the  spirit  in 
its  unity. 

In  introducing  this  subject,  it  seems  necessary  to  antici- 
pate, in  a  single  particular,  the  general  subject  of  a  subse- 
quent paper,  by  calling  attention  here  to  the  harmony 
that  appears  between  the  physical  and  the  verbal  forms  of 
revelation,  in  this  respect  of  truth. 

The  law  of  truth  stands  written  in  the  human  conscience, 
but  the  consistent  observance  of  it  is  beyond  the  reach  of 
human  nature.  This  law  has  been  inculcated  by  all  sages, 
and  it  underlies  the  legislation  of  every  age  and  every 
race.  It  commands  the  involuntary  homage  of  men.  But, 
practically,  how  fearful  is  the  disregard  of  it ! 


132  PHYSICAL   AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH, 

One  great  want  of  the  human  race  is  the  recognition  of 
a  high  and  unchangeable  standard  of  truth.  The  need  of 
the  influence  of  such  a  recognized  standard,  rising  before 
men  in  the  midst  of  the  daily  affairs  of  life,  inherent  in  all 
the  associations  by  which  they  are  surrounded,  and  con- 
tinually presented  to  their  gaze,  is  painfully  apparent,  not 
only  in  the  history,  but  also  in  the  present  life,  of  our  race. 
The  difficulty  does  not  lie  in  the  actual  want  of  such  a 
standard.  The  standards  of  truth  exist,  fully  meeting 
these  requirements,  and  entirely  harmonious  with  each 
other.  But  these  are  not  regarded  by  men.  The  human 
spirit  is  not  opened  to  their  influence.  As  far  as  possible, 
it  refuses  to  recognize  their  existence.  They  present  a 
perpetual  and  everywhere  present  reproach,  the  sight  of 
which  men  cannot  endure. 

First.  The  Bible  unites  with  conscience,  in  erecting 
the  standard  of  absolute,  transparent,  uncompromising 
truth.  It  is  of  the  highest  consequence,  as  well  as  inter- 
est, to  observe  that,  while  the  several  books  of  the  Bible 
were  written  at  intervals,  extending  certainly  over  more 
than  fifteen  hundred  years,  and  by  men  of  great  diversity 
of  character,  under  a  great  variety  of  circumstances,  and 
in  every  different  form  of  composition,  this  fundamental 
unity  of  truth,  associated  with  other  unities  of  a  remark- 
able nature,  runs  through  it  from  the  beginning  to  the 
end.  Everywhere  simple,  downright  truth  is  demanded, 
and  that  in  terms  expressing  the  most  exalted  conception 
of  it,  as  the  foundation  of  character,  on  which  alone  it  is 
possible  for  the  structure  of  spiritual  life  to  be  erected  ;  as 
the  fundamental  element  of  the  harmony  which,  in  the 
normal  condition  of  the  human  soul,  would  exist  between 
it  and  the  Divine  author  of  its  being,  whose  first  attribute 
is  declared  to  be  truth  that  endureth  to  all  generations. 

Second.  We  are  now  to  observe  how  the  physical  modes 


PHYSICAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH.  133 

of  revelation,  the  nature  of  things  by  which  we  are  en- 
vironed, harmonize  with  the  Bible  in  this  respect,  how 
one  law  of  truth  runs  through  the  spiritual  and  the  physi- 
cal modes  of  being,  and  especially  how  mechanical  science 
helps  us  to  perceive  and  realize  this  identity. 

If  we  analyze  our  conception  of  truth  in  moral  beings, 
we  shall  find  that  this  conception  involves  two  wholly  dis- 
tinct ideas.  The  primary  or  underlying  idea  is  that  of 
uniformity  of  action  or  conduct.  We  always  know  what 
the  absolutely  truthful  man  will  do  under  given  circum- 
stances. There  can  be  no  doubt  or  uncertainty  about 
it.  We  know  what  to  rely  upon.  This  is  the  first  idea. 
The  second  is  the  idea  of  justice.  This  man  will  do 
exactly  what  is  right,  as  he  views  the  right.  Here  the 
element  of  human  fallibility  comes  in.  He  may  be  mis- 
taken in  his  view,  but  what  he  holds  to  be  right,  that  he 
will  do.  His  conduct  will  be  guided  by  the  highest  and 
best  motives  of  which  he  is  capable.  This  is  our  concep- 
tion of  truth  in  moral  beings.  First,  uniformity  of  action ; 
second,  justice  in  action. 

Let  us  at  first  confine  our  attention  to  the  primary  or 
fundamental  idea  of  truth,  which  is,  uniformity  of  action. 
In  this  respect  at  least,  one  who  comes  to  engage  in  the 
study  of  mechanical  science  finds  that  he  has  entered  the 
region  of  eternal  truth.  Here  nothing  can  by  any  possi- 
bility deceive  or  mislead  or  fail  him.  He  can  rest  with 
absolute  certainty  in  the  confidence  that,  precisely  as 
force  is  seen  by  him  to  act  to-day,  so  under  the  same  con- 
ditions it  always  has  acted,  and  invariably  and  forever  will 
act.  This  is  a  fact  of  unspeakable  consequence.  Not  the 
student  of  engineering  alone,  but  the  whole  race  of  man, 
in  all  its  relations  and  employments,  relies  implicitly  upon 
uniformity  of  action  in  nature.  This  reliance  constitutes 
the  foundation  of  the  peace,  and  the  encouragement  to 


134  PHYSICAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH. 

the  activity,  of  every  creature.  Thus  we  find  the  primary 
idea,  of  uniformity  of  action,  that  idea  which  underlies 
our  conception  of  truth  in  moral  beings,  exhibited  in  its 
complete  and  absolute  realization  everywhere  in  nature. 

It  is  difficult  to  conceive  of  uniformity  of  action  even, 
without  a  moral  purpose  of  some  character,  either  good 
or  bad,  beneficent  or  injurious,  loving  or  hateful,  kind  or 
unkind.  That  is  to  say,  it  is  difficult  to  conceive  of  action 
without  an  actor.  Or  rather,  it  would  be  difficult  to  form 
such  a  conception,  if  we  had  not  from  our  infancy  been 
carefully  educated  to  do  it.  Materialistic  science,  encour- 
aged by  the  false  religious  conception  of  a  remote  God, 
has  taken  our  education  in  hand,  and  has  seen  to  it  that 
we  should  be  taught,  in  observing  this  uniformity  of 
action  in  nature,  to  form  an  absolutely  impersonal  concep- 
tion of  it.  We  have  been  brought  up  on  the  laws  of 
nature.  Truth  in  nature  we  have  been  taught  to  regard 
as  uniformity  of  action,  secured  by  obedience  to  law.  All 
idea  of  a  Being,  or  of  a  moral  quality,  in  any  act  seen  in 
nature,  has  been  carefully  excluded  from  the  mind. 
Curiously  enough,  the  very  uniformity  of  action,  which  is 
the  fundamental  element  of  moral  truth,  which  is  the  first 
thing  we  have  to  look  for  in  the  conduct  of  a  perfect 
moral  Being,  the  absence  of  which  would  prove  at  once 
the  non-existence  of  such  a  Being, — this  very  uniformity 
of  action  is  itself  made  use  of  to  hide  this  Being  from  our 
sight. 

But  in  reality,  nature  presents  to  us  far  more  than  uni- 
formity of  action  merely.  In  nature  the  moral  element 
and  the  Infinite  Being  are  manifested  in  the  clearest 
manner.  Nature  exhibits  everywhere,  not  a  partial,  but 
the  complete  idea  of  truth.  It  shows  us,  not  uniformity 
of  action  merely,  but  also  the  motive  by  which  this  action 
is  directed.  If  we  take  a  comprehensive  survey  of  the 


PHYSICAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH.  135 

subject,  we  can  hardly  fail  to  perceive  everywhere  a  uni- 
form and  obvious  purpose.  We  shall  see  force  in  nature 
to  be  directed  to  a  single  end,  and  to  be  wholly  beneficent. 
In  this  single  beneficent  end  the  infinite  diversity  of  the 
manifestations  of  force  have  their  unity. 

Let  us  commence  our  survey  with  the  earth  itself.  We 
observe  first  of  all  that,  as  the  earth  flies  through  space, 
rotating  on  its  axis,  revolving  about  the  sun,  and  attend- 
ing him  in  his  grander  orbit,  by  its  attraction  it  holds 
both  man  and  all  his  works,  and  all  objects  upon  it, 
securely  to  its  bosom.  This  is  not  a  fanciful  expression. 
It  is  a  plain  statement  of  the  fact.  From  a  contemplation 
of  this  supreme  care,  we  may  pass  to  consider,  in  a  com- 
prehensive view,  the  multiplied  and  varied  operations  of 
all  natural  agencies.  As  here  we  contemplate  the  harmo- 
nious cooperation  that  we  behold  everywhere  manifested, 
we  cannot  fail  to  perceive  that  every  thing  is  fulfilling  its 
appointed  office  within  a  plan.  Whether  we  attempt  to 
comprehend  this  plan  as  a  whole,  or  endeavor  to  explore 
any  separate  detail  of  it,  in  either  case  we  find  our  power 
of  observation  and  of  thought  transcended.  Its  grandeur 
and  its  minuteness  alike  overwhelm  us. 

We  are  able,  however,  to  apprehend  this  plan  suffi- 
ciently well  to  perceive  it  to  be  animated  by  a  central 
purpose,  to  the  final  achievement  of  which  all  subordinate 
results,  in  their  own  accomplishment,  are  obviously  in- 
tended to  contribute.  We  behold  the  earth,  the  air, 
water,  light,  and  heat,  with  all  manifestations  of  force, 
together  with  the  inferior  creations  of  both  vegetable  and 
animal  life,  in  one  grand  harmony,  ministering  to  the  ser- 
vice of  man.  All  these  agencies  combine,  to  sustain  his 
being,  to  develop  his  powers  and  capabilities,  to  provide 
employment  for  both  his  physical  and  his  mental  activ- 
ities, and  furnish  incentives  to  their  exercise,  to  supply 


136  PHYSICAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH. 

the  means  for  the  accomplishment  of  his  purposes,  to 
delight  his  senses,  and  to  call  into  exercise  all  the  highest 
forms  of  his  spiritual  activity  and  satisfy  their  longings. 
Thus,  in  ways  endless  in  their  variety,  all  things  minister 
to  support,  to  illuminate,  and  to  gladden  the  existence  of 
man.  There  can  be  no  question  about  this  fact.  Every 
increase  in  his  knowledge,  every  improvement  in  his  cul- 
ture, each  enlargement  of  his  powers  of  observation  and 
of  feeling,  enables  man  to  see  the  fact  with  increased  dis- 
tinctness, and  in  a  continually  higher  sense,  that  his  own 
being  and  happiness  is  the  immediate  end  of  the  creation 
over  which  he  finds  himself  to  be  the  lord,  whom  both 
things  and  inferior  beings  serve.  This  combined  physical, 
intellectual,  and  emotional  existence  of  achievement  and 
joy  in  man  is  the  single  and  obvious  end  of  the  unvarying 
activity  that  is  to  be  observed  in  nature. 

From  any  candid  consideration  of  this  scheme,  above 
all  ideas  of  power  and  of  wisdom  that  it  conveys,  the  mind 
that  is  itself  in  any  degree  beneficent  must  just  in  that 
degree  be  impressed  with  a  sense  of  the  beneficence  that 
is  manifested  in  it.  We  say  only  that  the  beneficent  mind 
must  receive  this  impression,  because,  just  as  beauty  can 
be  revealed  only  to  beauty,  so  beneficence  can  be  recog- 
nized only  by  beneficence.  And  so,  generally,  whenever 
references  are  made  to  moral  qualities,  it  must  be  assumed 
that  these  qualities  are  possessed  in  some  degree  by  the 
reader.  If  they  were  not,  the  language  could  convey  no 
meaning  to  him. 

We  note  that  the  grander  the  intellectual  power  of  the 
observer  of  nature,  the  more  he  becomes  amazed  in  the 
contemplation  of  the  mighty  plan ;  and,  on  the  other 
hand,  the  more  highly  his  own  beneficent  disposition  is 
developed,  the  more  deeply  he  is  affected  by  the  consider- 
ation of  the  beneficent  spirit  by  which  this  plan  is  ani- 


PHYSICAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH.  137 

mated.  We  seem,  then,  to  be  warranted  in  the  conclusion 
that  both  wisdom  and  beneficence  are  combined  in  this 
plan,  in  degree  beyond  our  power  to  recognize,  and  that 
the  limit  to  our  apprehension  of  either  is  found  in  the 
imperfect  development  of  wisdom  and  beneficence  in  our- 
selves. 

The  reflections  thus  far  made  point  to  the  conclusion, 
that  truth  in  nature  is  something  more  than  uniformity 
of  action ;  that  it  is  uniformity  of  action  with  a  beneficent 
purpose.  But  purpose  and  beneficence  are  both  attributes 
of  a  being.  We  are  thus  brought  to  the  necessity  of  ad- 
mitting, what  the  spirit  of  man  in  its  healthy  development 
recognizes  with  exultation  and  rapture,  the  existence  of 
an  Infinite  Being,  whose  ceaseless  beneficence  is  mani- 
fested throughout  the  material  creation,  and  of  which 
beneficence  man  is  himself  the  supreme  object.  Like  the 
Sabbath,  all  things  were  made  for  man.1  At  a  later  stage 
of  our  argument  we  shall  reach  a  still  higher  unity,  in  the 
adaptation  of  all  things  to  a  still  higher  purpose. 

Such  is  the  definition  of  truth  in  nature  ; — uniform 
beneficent  activity.  The  same  definition  holds  good,  also, 
of  truth  among  men,  with  an  apparent,  though  not  a  real, 
modification,  that  exists  in  the  nature  of  things.  Benefi- 
cence implies  relations  of  superiority  and  dependence. 
There  cannot  be  beneficence  between  equals.  Here,  evi- 

1  In  the  interpretation  of  nature,  the  blind  seem  thus  far  to  have  had  it 
pretty  much  their  own  way.  We  have  been  taught  to  repeat  absurd  expres- 
sions, founded  upon  supposed  exceptions  to  infinite  beneficence,  as  if  these 
were  the  rule.  Men  have  been  captivated  by  such  senseless  raving  of 
morbid  poets  as,  "  Nature,  red  in  tooth  and  claw."  The  earth  exerts  the 
inconceivable  benefit  of  its  uniform  attraction,  and  the  blind  try  to  fix  our 
attention  on  somebody  falling  from  a  precipice.  The  sun  warms  all  being 
into  glad  existence,  and  the  blind  see  a  man  sunstruck.  The  vital  air 
supports  all  life,  imparts  joy  with  every  breath,  and  brings  health  upon  its 
gales,  and  the  blind  point  us  to  cyclones,  and  so  on  to  the  end  of  the 
chapter.  It  is  as  if  we  gazed  upon  a  glorious  picture,  and  could  see  nothing 
but  fly  specks  on  it.  The  apparent  exceptions  to  infinite  beneficence,  how- 
ever, demand  thoughtful  consideration.  These  will  be  found  to  contain  the 
revelations  of  the  highest  truth,  and  therefore  to  be  especially  precious. 


138  PHYSICAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH. 

dently,  the  moral  quality  of  truth  is  justice.  Among  men, 
various  kinds  and  degrees  of  dependence  are  observed  to 
exist.  When  considered  alone,  these  differences  of  con- 
dition often  seem  to  be  extreme ;  but  when  we  take  a 
more  comprehensive  view,  we  discover  that  in  reality  the 
range  of  this  inequality  is  very  limited  indeed.  One 
human  being  cannot  be  conceived  to  be  dependent  on 
the  beneficence  of  another  in  any  such  sense  as  this,  that, 
without  the  active  exercise  of  that  beneficence  each  in- 
stant, and  in  an  infinite  multitude  and  variety  of  ways,  he 
could  not  exist.  But  this  is  precisely  the  sense,  or  the  de- 
gree, in  which  every  creature  alike  is  dependent  on  that 
beneficence  which  is  uniformly  manifested  throughout  the 
physical  creation.  Compared  with  this  dependence  of  every 
being  on  the  infinite  beneficence,  the  beneficence  and  the 
dependence  that  are  possible  to  exist  between  man  and 
man  very  nearly  disappear. 

Beneficence  and  justice  are,  however,  essentially  the 
same  thing.  These  are  words  that  characterize  the  out- 
ward act,  rather  than  the  inward  sentiment  or  motive. 
The  acts  of  beneficence  and  justice  have  their  common 
source  and  motive  in  love.  This  is  the  supreme  active 
principle.  Its  manifestations  differ  in  form,  as  required  by 
the  varied  relations  of  the  beings  in  whom  it  exists. 
Thus  love,  the  moral  quality  of  truth,  which  between 
equals  manifests  itself  in  act  as  justice,  assumes  the  form 
of  beneficence  on  the  one  hand,  and  of  gratitude  on  the 
other,  just  in  the  degree  that  these  practical  manifesta- 
tions of  it  are  called  for  by  the  existence  of  the  relations 
of  superiority  and  dependence.  These  are  all  the  natural 
expressions  of  the  same  sentiment  or  feeling  of  love,  in 
different  ways,  as  required  by  different  conditions  or  rela- 
tions. These  differences  of  manifestation  may  even  exist 
in  our  consciousness,  but  all  these  sentiments,  if  sincerely 


PHYSICAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH.  139 

felt,  are  in  reality  one.  The  sentiment  of  love  to  his 
neighbor  impels  the  true  man  to  be  just,  or  generous,  or 
grateful  to  him,  as  these  expressions  of  his  love  are 
demanded  by  the  relations  that  he  sustains.  Beneficence 
and  gratitude  are  reciprocally  due,  and  the  former  equally 
with  the  latter,  from  man  to  man,  when  the  relations  of 
superiority  and  dependence  exist  between  them.  In  this 
way,  as  in  every  other,  love  impels  to  the  hearty  rend- 
ering of  that  which  is  due.  Thus  all  manifestations  of 
love,  in  outward  act,  are  properly  embraced  under  the 
term  "justice."  This  comprehensive  idea  of  justice 
extends,  it  is  true,  far  beyond  the  requirements  of  human 
laws,  and  far  also  beyond  our  ordinary  habits  of  thought ; 
but  it  is  clearly  seen  to  be  the  true  one.  The  term  "  jus- 
tice" properly  comprehends  every  form  of  the  outward 
expression  of  love ;  the  rendering  of  which  expression 
affords,  to  the  spirit  in  which  the  sentiment  itself  exists, 
and  just  in  the  degree  in  which  the  spirit  is  animated  by 
this  sentiment,  the  same  joy  that  is  kindled  by  the  recep- 
tion of  it.  Truth  universal  we  thus  find  to  be  reciprocal 
just  action  between  moral  beings.  It  is  the  expression  of 
love  and  the  source  of  joy. 

Love  is  thus  seen  to  be  the  normal  mo'tive  of  conduct, 
and  justice,  in  some  one  of  its  forms,  to  be  its  outward 
expression,  in  all  cases  alike,  whether  in  the  case  of 
equality,  or  in  the  case  of  infinite  dependence  on  the  one 
hand  and  infinite  care  on  the  other. 

In  the  divine  nature,  the  eternal  changlessness  of  which 
mechanical  science  is  educating  mankind  to  form  a  con- 
ception of,  it  is  thus  obvious  that  no  schism  can  exist 
between  love  and  justice.  Justice  is  a  mode  of  action. 
It  has  only  one  opposite,  and  that  is  injustice.  Injustice 
is  sin,  that  shocks  the  harmony  of  the  universe. 

In  considering  the  subject  of  truth  between  man  and 


140  PHYSICAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH. 

man,  viewed  as  equals,  or  the  practical  application  of  the 
principles  that  have  just  been  dwelt  upon,  in  the  daily 
intercourse  of  men,  it  becomes  necessary  to  distinguish 
carefully  between  facts  and  ideals ;  or,  in  other  words, 
between  truth  as  realized,  and  the  ideal  of  truth.  For 
common  and  familiar  illustrations  of  this  necessity,  we 
may  take  our  commercial  measures,  the  pound,  the  yard, 
the  bushel.  Persons  who  are  accustomed  to  accuracy 
know  very  well  that  neither  of  these  ideals  could  be  abso- 
lutely given  in  any  reality.  But  the  faithful  representa- 
tion of  them,  in  quantities  of  things  merchantable,  with 
the  closest  attainable  approach  to  accuracy,  is  honesty. 
Here  we  at  once  recognize  justice  to  be  the  essential 
moral  element  in  truth,  and  also  the  fact  that  every  act 
of  a  being  must  possess  a  moral  quality.  Uniformity  of 
action  in  giving  short  weight  or  measure  is  the  opposite 
of  truth. 

The  ideal,  as  above  illustrated,  underlies  all  material 
realities.  Through  these  realities,  as  the  only  possible 
way,  the  mind  is  continually  endeavoring  to  reach  the  ex- 
pression of  its  ideals.  Thus  the  mechanic  has  in  his  mind 
the  ideals  of  mechanical  truth,  as  of  the  true  line,  the  true 
plane,  the  true  cylinder,  the  true  angle  or  division  of  a 
circle,  the  true  divisions  of  force,  of  space,  and  of  time, 
truth  of  form,  and  of  construction,  and  of  mechanical 
function.  It  becomes  his  highest  aim  to  realize  these 
ideals  in  sensible  form,  or,  as  it  may  be  termed,  in  con- 
crete expression.  To  this  end  he  exhausts  his  ingenuity 
in  devising  methods,  and  his  skill  in  the  application  of 
them. 

The  question  naturally  presents  itself:  Where  is  the 
moral  quality  found  in  this  form  of  truth  ?  The  answer 
to  this  question  lies  on  the  surface,  as  much  so  as  in  the 
case  of  the  true  pound,  or  yard,  or  bushel,  which,  indeed, 


PHYSICAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH.  14! 

are  some  of  the  very  ideals  that  the  mechanic  endeavors 
to  realize  and  embody  with  exactness.  In  these,  and  in 
all  other  cases,  men  are  dependent  on  the  mechanic  for 
the  means  of  measurement.  Upon  his  ingenuity  and 
skill,  directed  to  the  realization  of  his  ideals,  in  such  ways 
that  the  expression  of  them  can  be  uniformly  repeated, 
all  men  rely,  throughout  their  varied  intercourse,  and  in 
their  search  after  every  form  of  knowledge  of  a  physical 
nature.  All  other  men  are  dependent  upon  the  mechanic 
for  the  means  by  which  to  express,  in  reality,  with  the 
utmost  attainable  exactness,  the  ideal  physical  truths 
existing  in  their  minds,  and  to  discover  those  which  exist 
in  nature.  The  mechanic  is  thus  called  upon  to  perform 
a  service  of  fundamental  importance,  and  in  undertaking 
this  service  he  assumes  a  relation  towards  his  fellow-men, 
in  which  justice  demands  from  him  the  exercise  of  the 
most  anxious  fidelity. 

But  we  need  not  look  so  far  as  this.  We  may  suppose 
that  these  uses  for  his  labor  are  beyond  his  thought,  and 
that  his  attention  is  limited  to  the  truth  itself;  that  he  is 
endeavoring  to  realize  this  truth  entirely  for  its  own  sake. 
In  what  he  is  doing  he  has  now,  by  our  supposition,  no 
conscious  relation  with  his  fellow-men,  but  only  with  his 
own  conception  of  the  mechanical  truth  that  he  is  seeking 
to  realize  or  to  express.  Here  the  moral  quality  appears 
in  fidelity  to  his  ideal.  It  is  obvious  that  he  can  be 
faithful  or  faithless  to  this,  in  the  same  sense  in  which  he 
can  be  faithful  or  faithless  to  his  fellow-men.  There 
exists  a  moral  quality  in  every  possible  act  of  man.  He 
sustains  always  a  relation  of  some  kind,  and  whatever 
this  relation  may  be,  his  conduct  must  be  either  true  or 
false,  just  or  unjust,  right  or  wrong. 

The  moral  quality  of  truth  among  men  is  not,  however, 
here  at  all  in  question.  This  is  universally  recognized.  It 


142  PHYSICAL  AND    SPIRITUAL    TRUTH. 

is  the  moral  quality  of  truth  in  nature  that  I  am  endeavor- 
ing to  make  clear,  and  the  above  elucidation  of  the  general 
subject  of  truth  is  important  only  in  its  bearing  on  this 
demonstration,  as  it  enables  us  to  see  in  nature  the  pres- 
ence of  the  Infinite  Moral  Being  with  more  distinctness. 
The  moral  quality  of  truth  may  properly  be  expressed  by 
the  word  "  faithfulness."  Now  the  faithfulness  of  God  in 
nature,  as  it  seems  to  me,  must  be  deeply  impressed  upon 
the  mind  that  is  capable  of  just  sentiments,  when  it  is 
considered  what  the  consequences  would  be,  if  uniformity 
of  action  in  nature  could  ever  fail. 

These  consequences,  although  unspeakably  transcending 
them  in  degree,  would  be  of  the  same  character  as  those 
which  follow  from  deceit,  misrepresentation,  or  unfaithful- 
ness in  man.  Imagination  could  not  conceive  the  effect 
upon  the  human  race  of  a  general  loss  of  confidence  in 
the  uniformity  of  action  in  nature ;  a  confidence  that  is 
so  absolute,  and  upon  which  all  human  affairs  depend. 
When  we  reflect  upon  this  view  of  the  subject,  we  feel, 
indeed,  that  the  expression  "  uniformity  of  action "  is 
inadequate,  even  to  mockery  ;  and  that  the  only  rational 
conception  of  truth  in  nature  is  that  of  faithfulness  on  the 
part  of  the  Infinite  God. 

Nothing  is  more  instructive,  and  nothing  can  be  more 
fascinating  to  the  ingenuous  mind,  than  the  contemplation 
of  this  faithfulness,  as  it  is  manifested  in  the  unvarying 
uniformity  of  constitution  and  operation  of  all  things 
in  nature,  and  the  realization  of  our  own  helpless  de- 
pendence on  this  fidelity.  From  the  multitude  of  illus- 
trations, of  this  faithfulness  on  the  one  hand,  and  of  our 
dependence  upon  it  on  the  other,  which  crowd  upon  our 
attention,  two,  taken  almost  at  random,  must  suffice. 

The  first  illustration  is  this:  The  constitution  of  the 
atmosphere,  in  the  proportions  of  the  two  gases,  oxygen 


PHYSICAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH.  143 

and  nitrogen,  which  compose  it,  is  invariable  over  all  the 
earth.  Now  of  all  the  forms  of  matter  that  exist,  or  that 
can  exist,  in  the  gaseous  state,  and  of  all  their  combina- 
tions, it  has  been  shown  that  this  particular  combination 
of  oxygen  and  nitrogen  is  the  only  one  that  can  sustain 
animal  life.  Not  only  in  this  the  case,  but,  moreover,  it 
is  found  that  the  least  change  from  the  existing  propor- 
tions of  these  two  gases,  even  though  so  trifling  that  all 
the  analytical  skill  of  the  chemist  is  taxed  to  discover  it, 
would  produce  injurious  effects  on  every  creature  that 
breathes.  Our  admiration  and  awe  are  increased  when  we 
consider  the  fact,  that  no  chemical  union  or  combination 
takes  place  between  these  two  gases  in  the  atmosphere, 
but  they  exist  together  merely  as  a  mechanical  mixture. 
A  great  reason  has  been  found  why  this  needs  to  be  so,  a 
reason  which  will  be  stated  in  its  proper  connection  by 
and  by.  But  the  mystery  which  strikes  us  dumb  is, 
how  these  indispensable  proportions  are  preserved.  If  a 
chemical  union  took  place,  then  we  might  imagine  that  we 
understood  it.  But  what  determines  and  maintains  these 
proportions  in  a  mere  mechanical  mixture  ?  This  is 
something  that  we  know  nothing  about.  We  can  per- 
ceive or  imagine  no  necessity,  we  are  shut  up  to  faith  that 
these  proportions  will  be  preserved. 

The  second  illustration  is  this :  The  earth  is  not  a  per- 
fect sphere,  but  its  equatorial  diameter  is  26.48  miles 
greater  than  its  polar  diameter.  This  excess  of  matter  at 
the  equator  is  the  effect  of  the  centrifugal  force  that  is 
developed  by  the  revolution  of  the  earth  on  its  axis. 
This  centrifugal  force  sustains  over  all  the  globe  a  spher- 
ical crescent.  The  points  of  this  crescent  are  at  the 
poles.  From  these  it  gradually  increases  in  thickness,  un- 
til at  the  equator  it  reaches  around  the  whole  circle  of  the 
globe  the  depth  of  13.24  miles.  Thit  portion  of  the 


144  PHYSICAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH. 

earth's  surface  which  is  now  solid,  having  assumed  this 
general  form  when  in  a  fluid  state,  might  possibly  retain 
this  form,  although  some  change  had  taken  place  in 
the  forces  by  which  it  was  originally  determined.  This, 
however,  could  not  be  the  case  with  the  fluid  portion. 
The  surface  of  the  ocean  is  held  at  this  elevation  at  the 
equator  by  this  centrifugal  force.  Both  on  the  equator, 
and  at  every  other  point  of  their  surfaces,  the  oceans 
stand  at  the  height  that  is  determined  by  the  equilibrium 
of  the  two  counteracting  forces,  namely,  the  attraction  of 
the  earth  and  the  centrifugal  force  developed  by  its  revo- 
lution. A  change  of  one  minute  in  the  period  of  the 
earth's  rotation,  or  in  the  length  of  the  day,  would  pro- 
duce a  change  of  196  feet  in  the  relative  heights  of  the 
ocean  at  the  poles  and  at  the  equator.  Should  the  day 
become  lengthened  by  this  amount,  a  wave  sufficient  to 
produce  this  change  would  leave  the  equator  on  all  sides 
of  the  earth  and  flow  towards  the  poles. 

But  we  may  sleep  in  peace,  and  go  about  our  daily  avo- 
cations undisturbed.  Eternal  faithfulness  knows  no  relaxa- 
tion. Unhindered  motion  continues  uniform  forever.  It 
is  certain  that  since  geologic  time  began  the  relative  ele- 
vations of  land  and  water  on  the  surface  of  the  globe 
have  not  suffered  any  changes  other  than  those  of  a  local 
character,  and  referable  to  local  causes.  Even  these 
changes  have  proceeded  so  gradually  as  to  become  sensi- 
ble only  after  long  periods  of  time.  There  have  been  no 
alterations  of  a  general  nature,  such  as  would  indicate 
a  sensible  change  in  the  rate  of  the  earth's  rotation. 

Thus  mechanical  science,  using  the  term  in  its  largest 
signification,  as  the  science  of  force,  shows  us  to  be  envi- 
roned with  truth  ;  and,  moreover,  it  habituates  us  to  the 
continual  association  with  truth,  in  the  multiplied  forms 
of  its  physical  expression.  In  all  these  forms  we  have  to 


PHYSICAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH.  145 

deal  with  it  continually.  The  influence  of  this  environ- 
ment of  truth  has  already  been  largely  felt,  although  as 
yet  attention  has  been  but  little  directed  to  it.  Men  have 
been  mostly  unconscious  of  its  influence.  This  has  been 
silently  but  none  the  less  powerfully  exerted.  From  the 
education  that  will,  directly  and  indirectly,  be  afforded  by 
mechanical  science,  it  must  result,  that  mankind  generally 
will  come  to  be  more  conscious  of  the  manifestations  of 
truth  by  which  they  are  surrounded.  The  all-pervading 
presence  of  the  Deity  will  come  to  be  more  generally  felt, 
and  will  exert  more  and  more  its  legitimate  influence  on 
human  character.  The  ultimate  extent  of  this  influence 
will  undoubtedly  be  greater  and  more  beneficent  than  we 
are  at  present  able  to  imagine. 

In  an  earlier  paper  allusion  has  been  made  to  the  rela- 
tion that  the  creation  bears  to  us  as  our  educator.  Atten- 
tion was  there  called  to  what  was  termed  the  ministry  of 
force.  We  have  now  been  considering  a  higher  form  of 
this  educational  influence,  which  the  physical  creation  is 
adapted,  and  was  evidently  intended,  to  exert  on  the 
character  of  man,  and  which  we  may  term  the  ministry  of 
truth. 

The  observer  of  nature  has  the  fact  impressed  upon  his 
mind,  more  and  more  deeply,  that  the  primary  law  of  the 
universe  is  truth — uniformity  of  action,  directed  by  love. 
He  learns  also  the  only  way  in  which  a  moral  being, 
endowed  with  a  free  will,  can  come  to  be  in  harmony  with 
this  universal  law  of  truth.  This  must  be  established, 
also,  as  the  law  of  his  own  voluntary  activity,  by  the  per- 
fect development  of  its  motive  ;  so  that  it  becomes  the 
only  manner  in  which  it  is  possible  for  his  volition  to  act. 
The  necessity  for  this  standard  of  truth  in  his  own  being 
is  not  at  all  affected  by  the  fact,  that  he  finds  it  too  high, 
not  only  for  his  attainment,  but  even  for  his  comprehen- 


146  PHYSICAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH. 

sion.  The  attainment  of  it  is  clearly  the  only  way  in 
which  truth  in  human  beings  can  be  made  to  conform  to 
truth  as  this  is  set  before  us  in  the  physical  creation. 

So  long,  however,  as  physical  truth  continues  to  be 
falsely  apprehended,  it  can  exert  but  a  feeble  influence 
upon  the  spiritual  nature  of  man,  compared  with  the 
mighty  benefit  that  should  be  received  from  it.  Philoso- 
phers consider  it  scientific  to  exclude  the  Creator  from  His 
works.  Metaphysicians  until  quite  recently  have  taught 
that  the  mind  is  composed  of  separate  and  unrelated 
faculties;  and  the  mental  activity  by  which  the  moral 
quality  in  nature  can  be  recognized  we  are  to  this  day  for- 
bidden to  exercise  for  that  purpose. 

In  all  systems  of  education,  a  wide  distinction  is  still 
made  between  physical  and  moral  truth,  as  being  essen- 
tially different,  and  as  being  apprehended  by  us  through 
different  faculties  or  senses.  We  are  taught  that  physical 
truth  relates  to  things,  and  is  apprehended  by  us  fully  and 
completely  by  the  exercise  of  our  intellectual  faculties ; 
while  moral  truth  relates  to  moral  beings,  and  is  appre- 
hended by  us  through  our  moral  sense.  We  are  taught 
that,  by  the  employment  of  our  purely  intellectual  powers 
we  comprehend  physical  science  in  all  its  departments ; 
and  with  this  science  moral  truth  and  moral  sentiments 
and  the  emotional  nature  have  nothing  whatever  to  do. 
We  are  taught  that  between  the  laws  of  the  physical  uni- 
verse and  the  conduct  of  moral  beings,  as  between  the 
mental  faculties  by  which  the  former  are  apprehended, 
and  the  moral  sentiments  that  direct  the  latter,  there  ex- 
ists absolutely  no  relation.  By  most  persons  this  would 
be  laid  down  as  an  axiom,  too  obvious  for  discussion, 
needing  only  to  be  stated.  To  this  height  of  absurdity 
have  we  been  brought  by  a  false  system  of  education. 

All   this   elaborate    artificial   classification  has  already 


PHYSICAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH.  147 

been  shown  to  be  wholly  imaginary — as  much  the  idle 
creation  of  the  mind  as  is  any  system  of  idolatry.  Here 
we  find  mankind  lost  in  a  morass  of  falsehood,  out  of 
which  nothing  can  extricate  us,  except  the  recognition  of 
the  absolute  unity  of  truth  in  its  physical  and  its  spiritual 
forms  of  manifestation,  and  also  of  the  unity  of  the  human 
spirit  by  which  this  truth  is  to  be  apprehended. 

Science  would  shut  us  up  to  the  contemplation  of  law; 
the  highest  conception  possible  to  be  formed  by  what  it 
terms  the  intellect ;  the  imaginary  God  of  this  imaginary 
member  or  organ  of  the  human  spirit.  But  the  considera- 
tions which  have  been  presented  leave  no  room  for  doubt 
that  the  spiritual  element  is  the  fundamental  element  in 
physical  truth,  and  that  the  idea  of  physical  truth  which 
does  not  embrace  this  feature  of  it  is  incomplete  in  a  vital 
respect,  and  therefore  is  misleading  in  its  influence.  We 
are  now  able  to  affirm  that  every  physical  phenomenon  is 
the  act  of  an  Infinite  Being,  performed  with  reference, 
either  direct  or  ultimate,  to  inferior  and  dependent  beings. 

Physical  truth  is  then  properly  defined  to  be  the  conduct 
of  God.  It  is  the  mode  in  which  God  deals  with  man, 
and  works  with  reference  to  man.  So,  in  its  essential 
nature,  as  well  as  in  the  mode  of  its  revelation  to  us,  or 
of  its  apprehension  by  us,  it  is  not  to  be  distinguished 
from  the  conduct  of  men,  or  the  mode  in  which  they  deal 
with  one  another. 

The  recognition  of  force  in  the  universe,  without  the 
recognition  of  the  moral  quality  in  every  manifestation  of 
force,  as  the  act  of  a  Being,  is  as  if  we  should  confine  our 
attention  to  the  mere  exertions  of  force  by  men,  without 
reference  to  the  motives  by  which  these  were  prompted 
and  directed.  The  latter  is  something  that  the  mind  re- 
fuses to  do.  We  know,  our  own  consciousness  assures  us, 
that  every  act  of  man  is  directed  by  a  motive.  Then  our 


148  PHYSICAL   AND    SPIRITUAL    TRUTH. 

only  possible  conclusion  is  that  every  act  of  God  is  direct- 
ed by  a  motive  ;  and  the  imaginary  distinction  between 
physical  and  moral  science,  and  the  modes  of  their  appre- 
hension, vanishes  away. 

Attention  has  already  been  called  to  the  fact,  that  this 
distinction,  which  has  been  made  fundamental  in  our  sys- 
tems of  thought,  and  the  effect  of  which  is  so  unfortunate, 
is  in  reality  only  a  distinction  between  those  truths  which 
can  be  considered  without  reference  to  a  Being,  and  those 
which  cannot  be  separated  from  a  Being  in  our  thought. 
All  phenomena  which  men  could  consider  separately  from 
the  idea  of  a  Being  they  have  so  considered.  They  have 
formed  such  partial  conceptions  of  them  as  they  could  do 
when  thus  cut  off  from  their  source,  and  these  conceptions 
constitute  physical  science. 

The  work  of  u  the  understanding,"  about  which  we  hear 
continually,  is,  in  all  the  field  of  physical  science,  merely 
the  activity  of  the  mind  in  tracing  relations,  in  distin- 
guishing, combining,  and  concluding,  based  on  a  partial 
apprehension  of  the  facts  ;  when  the  facts  of  paramount 
significance  are  not  present  in  consciousness. 

This  partial  philosophy  receives  but  little  check  in  those 
departments  of  science,  in  which  the  physical  organs  of 
perception  are  wholly  relied  upon,  in  which  observation 
terminates  on  material  forms,  and  in  which  it  is  possible 
for  the  thought  of  spiritual  realities  to  be  avoided.  But 
mechanical  science,  which  brings  us  into  immediate  con- 
tact with  the  omnipresent  reality  of  force,  and  exhibits  to 
us,  in  uniformity  of  action,  the  underlying  and  primary 
element  of  moral  truth,  contains  a  power  that  aids  us  ma- 
terially in  the  discernment  of  all  spiritual  realities. 

In  a  former  paper  we  have  considered  the  unity  of  the 
human  spirit.  Our  present  discussion  enables  us  to  affirm 
the  unity  of  truth.  There  is  only  one  kind  of  truth,  as 


PHYSICAL  AND   SPIRITUAL    TRUTH. 


149 


there  is  only  one  spirit  in  man  to  apprehend  it.  Truth  in 
the  physical  creation  is  the  conduct  of  God.  Science  is 
the  knowledge  of  the  conduct  of  God.  Truth  in  man  is 
conduct  like  the  conduct  of  God.  All  truth  involves 
spiritual  being  as  an  essential  element  of  the  conception, 
and  requires  for  its  correct  apprehension  the  exercise  by 
the  human  spirit  of  every  form  of  its  activity. 


THE  PERCEPTION  OF  SPIRITUAL  REALITIES 
BY  RECOGNITION. 


GOD  in  nature  is  the  supreme  fact  of  science.  Then,  of 
course,  He  ought  to  be  so  regarded.  But  He  is  not  gen- 
erally so  regarded.  There  must  be  a  reason  for  this  re- 
fusal, and  a  reason  which,  when  we  come  to  perceive  it,  will 
appear  to  us  adequate  to  account  for  the  fact.  This  phe- 
nomenon, like  all  others,  must  have  its  complete  explana- 
tion. It  is  only  necessary  that  such  explanation  shall  be 
pointed  out.  This  will  be  attempted  in  the  present  paper 
and  in  succeeding  papers. 

The  real  cause  of  the  failure  of  the  mind  to  perceive 
God  in  nature  seems  to  lie  in  the  mode  of  revelation, 
by  which  the  knowledge  of  all  spiritual  realities  is  con- 
veyed to  us.  It  has  been  shown  already  respecting  force, 
that  this  first  spiritual  reality  is  perceived  by  recognition. 
We  become  aware  of  the  existence  of  force  only  as  we 
recognize  it.  Through  similarity  of  effects  produced,  we 
recognize  force  as  the  act  of  a  being  ;  an  act  similar  to 
efforts  which  we  are  conscious  of  having  made  ourselves. 
It  seemed  obvious  that  one  who  was  not  himself  capa- 
ble of  exerting  force  could  not  form  any  idea  of  force.  It 
is  not  necessary  to  repeat  here  the  exposition  of  this  un- 
doubted fact. 

We  now  note  that  the  other  spiritual  realities,  truth, 
beauty,  and  love,  are  revealed  to  our  minds  in  the  same 

150 


SPIRITUAL   REALITIES.  I  51 

way,  or  by  recognition.  Like  force,  they  are  of  a  nature 
incapable  of  being  apprehended  through  our  physical 
organs  of  perception  merely.  Still,  like  force  again,  they 
are  revealed  to  us  in  some  way.  In  some  way,  and  in 
some  degree,  we  certainly  become  aware  of  their  existence. 
How  do  we  come  to  have  such  cognitions  ?  We  obtain 
them  in  a  manner  similar  to  that  in  which  we  obtain  our 
knowledge  of  force.  Through  similarity  of  manifestation, 
in  outward  act,  or  visible  or  audible  expression,  we  recog- 
nize that  which  we  are  conscious  of  experiencing  our- 
selves. 

This  is  the  only  way  in  which  such  conceptions  can  be 
formed,  in  which  the  images  of  truth,  or  beauty,  or  love 
can  be  seen  by  us  in  consciousness.  We  recognize  that 
which  is  like  to  our  conscious  selves.  In  addition  to  this, 
we  also  recognize  that  which  is  like  to  our  ideal ;  that  is, 
which  is  like  in  kind,  only  transcending  in  degree,  that  of 
which  we  are  capable  ourselves. 

As  one  incapable  of  exerting  force  can  form  no  con- 
ception of  force,  so  one  incapable  of  truth  or  love  can 
form  no  conception  of  truth  or  love.  Any  expression  or 
manifestation  of  these  realities  in  others  cannot  sug- 
gest any  corresponding  sensations  to  him.  He  has  no  ex- 
perience that  would  enable  him  to  recognize  them.  They 
revive  no  images  in  his  consciousness.  The  same  is  true, 
also,  of  beauty  ;  although  we  cannot  well  consider  the  case 
of  beauty  until  we  shall  have  seen  its  true  nature,  and 
the  identity  of  physical  with  spiritual  beauty,  which  will 
form  the  subject  of  a  later  paper. 

This  mode  of  perception  of  spiritual  realities  is  not 
essentially  different  from  that  of  the  perception  of  objects 
of  sense.  In  both  perceptions  alike  an  image  is  formed 
in  consciousness.  In  the  one  case  this  image  is  like  some 
external  object.  In  the  other  case  it  is  like  some  previous 


152  SPIRITUAL  REALITIES. 

sensation.  In  each  case  it  is  only  the  image  that  is  con- 
templated, and  that  is  referred  by  us  to  the  object,  or 
to  the  being.  For  illustration,  we  attribute  whiteness  to 
an  object  and  purity  to  a  soul  by  mental  processes  similar 
to  each  other,  and  which  are  founded  upon  images  that  in 
the  two  cases  alike  we  have  formed  in  our  minds. 

The  identity  of  these  mental  operations  ought  to  be 
made  entirely  clear.  In  physical  perception  the  likeness 
always  stands  to  us  in  place  of  the  reality.  The  purpose 
of  all  care  in  observation  is  to  form  this  likeness  correctly, 
and  all  errors  arise  from  the  failure  to  do  so.  Every  sense 
is  often  called  into  exercise  to  verify  the  correct  image 
in  our  minds. 

So,  precisely,  we  observe  the  conduct  of  other  persons, 
and  we  form  images  or  conceptions  of  the  motives  that 
have  actuated  them  to  such  conduct,  or  of  the  sentiments 
or  feelings  that  are  manifested  by  it.  These  images  or 
conceptions  we  can  form  in  only  one  way.  We  recognize 
the  fact,  that  by  similar  conduct  we  should  ourselves 
manifest  or  express  such  motives  or  sentiments  or  feel- 
ings. The  images  of  them  are  revived  in  consciousness, 
and  we  attribute  or  refer  these  motives  or  sentiments  or 
feelings  to  the  person  whose  conduct  we  observe.  This 
accounts  for  the  fact,  that  ordinarily  it  is  not  possible  for 
men  to  conceive  of  other  men  as  being  actuated  to  any 
particular  conduct  by  motives  different  from  those  which 
they  are  conscious  would  impel  themselves  to  the  same 
conduct. 

Another  result  follows  from  this  mode  of  spiritual  per- 
ception. In  advance  of  any  conduct  observed,  it  is  the 
spontaneous  impulse  of  the  mind  to  perceive  in  every 
other  mind  the  reflection  of  its  own  conscious  self.  We 
naturally  refer  the  sensations  and  emotions  of  which  we 
are  conscious  to  other  minds,  precisely  as  we  do  to  our 


SPIRITUAL   REALITIES.  153 

own.  Thus  we  intuitively  expect  from  others  the  same 
conduct,  or  outward  expression  of  the  spiritual  state,  that 
would  be  natural  to  ourselves. 

Among  spiritual  beings  in  their  normal  condition,  and 
for  such  beings  this  mode  of  perception  of  spiritual  reali- 
ties was  evidently  designed,  this  expectation  respecting 
the  conduct  of  each  other  could  never  be  disappointed. 
The  conduct  would  invariably  manifest  the  existence  of 
love,  and  consequently  of  truth,  in  every  one  in  equal  de- 
gree, and  complete  harmony  and  sympathy  would  be  the 
necessary  result. 

But  among  men  the  realities  of  truth  and  love  are 
developed  in  very  different  degrees,  and  these  degrees 
at  the  best  limited  ;  moreover,  each  one  of  these  has 
its  corresponding  opposite,  in  falsehood  and  hatred,  and 
these  opposites  are  also  developed  in  endless  diversity  of 
degree.  These  two  classes  of  opposites,  in  their  various 
combinations,  constitute  the  varieties  of  human  character. 

Under  these  abnormal  conditions,  the  spontaneous  in- 
clination still  exists  in  each  individual,  to  see  in  others 
only  the  reflection  of  his  own  conscious  nature,  to  attrib- 
ute to  others  the  motives  and  sentiments  which  alone  he 
is  able  to  conceive,  and  to  reconcile  all  conduct  observed 
with  such  motives  and  feelings. 

This  tendency,  which  is  now  a  mistaken  one,  is  in  some 
degree  corrected  by  experience,  in  proportion  as  the 
judicial  spirit  is  possessed.  It  is  only  by  the  exercise  of 
this  spirit  that  we  are  able  to  attribute  conduct  that  is  of 
a  character  more  elevated  than  we  ourselves  are  capable 
of  to  motives  which  we  cannot  comprehend,  or  of  which 
we  are  not  conscious. 

It  is  obvious  that  the  complete  want  of  the  normal 
spiritual  realities  of  truth  and  love,  and  still  more  the  pos- 
session of  their  opposites,  must  of  necessity  render  the  in- 


1 54  SPIRITUAL  REALITIES. 

dividual  insensible  to  the  existence  of  the  former  in  other 
beings.  He  cannot  recognize  them.  He  cannot  perceive 
their  existence,  in  the  only  possible  mode  of  such  percep- 
tion. For  him  they  have  no  existence.  He  is  necessarily 
dead  to  them.  This  affords  the  explanation  of  the  fact, 
which  has  already  been  stated,  that  like  can  be  revealed 
only  to  like,  beauty  to  beauty,  truth  to  truth,  love  to  love. 

The  subject  of  ideals  of  truth  and  love,  and  conse- 
quently, as  we  shall  see  hereafter,  of  beauty,  is  an  inter- 
esting and  important  one.  Ideals  of  these  realities  are 
images  of  them  which  are  perceived  by  us  more  or  less 
vaguely,  because  in  degree  they  transcend  our  own  ex- 
perience, and  so  exceed  our  power  to  form  images  of 
them  distinctly.  It  is  to  be  observed,  that  our  power  to 
form  these  ideals,  or  indistinct  conceptions  of  degrees  of 
truth  and  love  that  transcend  our  own  experience,  in- 
creases with  each  increase  of  our  conscious  possession  of 
these  realities,  or  in  other  words,  of  our  ability  to  form 
distinct  conceptions  of  them.  The  higher  the  actual  at- 
tainment, the  higher  becomes  the  ideal. 

This  is  in  accordance  with  what  is  to  be  observed  uni- 
versally. In  looking  at  any  object  of  sense,  for  example, 
the  ignorant  man  is  quite  incapable  of  realizing  that  there 
is  any  thing  before  him  that  he  cannot  see.  To  the 
instructed  mind,  on  the  contrary,  just  in  proportion  to 
the  depth  of  its  own  real  insight  will  be  its  further  appre- 
hension of  the  existence  of  that  which  is  beyond  its 
power  to  discern.  So  precisely  in  the  case  of  these  spirit- 
ual realities.  The  greater  the  degree  in  which  these  are 
really  possessed,  the  more  capable  the  spirit  becomes  of 
realizing  the  facts,  of  their  infinite  nature,  and  of  the 
limited  extent  to  which  it  can  form  distinct  images  or 
conceptions  of  them,  or  become  distinctly  conscious  of 
their  existence. 


SPIRITUAL  REALITIES.  I  55 

When  we  shall  come  to  consider  the  combined  manifes- 
tation of  all  normal  spiritual  realities  in  their  harmony, 
which  is  beauty,-  the  occasion  will  present  itself  for  view- 
ing this  general  subject  of  spiritual  recognition  somewhat 
more  in  detail.  The  observations  already  made  seem  to 
be  sufficient,  to  show  this  recognition  to  be  the  necessary 
mode  of  the  revelation  of  these  realities. 


THE    REVELATION   OF   GOD. 


IN  the  preceding  paper  a  brief  exposition  was  given  of 
the  mode  in  which  all  spiritual  realities  are  revealed  to 
man.  It  would  seem  to  follow,  necessarily,  that  the 
supreme  spiritual  reality,  the  Infinite  Being,  in  whom 
force,  truth,  beauty,  and  love  inhere,  from  whom  these 
proceed,  of  whom  they  are  the  manifestation,  can  Himself 
be  revealed  only  in  the  same  way,  or,  by  recognition, 
as  our  ultimate  and  adored  ideal.  The  importance  of 
this  subject,  and  the  radical  error  underlying  the  view  of 
it  which  is  commonly  held,  and  which  has  become  fixed 
by  our  education,  demand  for  it,  however,  a  separate  and 
full  discussion.  It  is  undoubtedly  necessary  that  the  ap- 
plication to  the  revelation  of  God,  of  this  law  of  spiritual 
perception  by  recognition,  should  be  distinctly  shown. 

When,  in  another  stage  of  being,  our  eyes  shall  be 
opened,  or  our  power  of  spiritual  recognition  shall  be  en- 
larged, the  overwhelming  fact  will  burst  upon  us,  that  God 
had  been  before  us  every  instant  of  our  existence,  and 
had  been  revealed  in  every  possible  way  ;  that  all  things 
had  combined  to  show  the  supreme  truth  of  his  presence ; 
and  that,  while  the  few  had  faintly  and  dimly  realized  the 
enrapturing  revelation,  the  mass  of  mankind,  through 
inability  to  recognize  infinite  and  universal  love,  had  been 
stone-blind  to  it  all.  Amazement  will  fill  the  soul,  as  it 
recalls,  in  every  activity  of  nature,  the  ceaseless  revelation 
of  God. 


THE  REVELATION  OF  GOD. 

The  mistaken  views  and  confusion  of  thought  that  pre- 
vail on  this  subject,  of  our  apprehension  of  the  being  of 
God,  have  their  roots  in  the  artificial  imaginary  divisions 
of  the  human  spirit,  and  the  arbitrary  allotment  of  sepa- 
rate functions  to  its  supposed  organs.  Thus  it  is  assumed 
that  the  emotional  nature  has  no  perceptive  power.  It  is 
taken  as  an  axiom,  that  I  cannot  love,  except  as  first  I 
have  an  intellectual  apprehension  of  the  being  that  I  am 
to  love.  The  fact  that  love  only  can  recognize  love,  that 
it  is  only  through  such  recognition  that  the  spirit  in 
its  unity  obtains  its  knowledge  of  the  existence  of  this 
principle,  or  emotion,  or  motive  to  action,  in  another 
spirit,  and  of  God,  who  is  love,  is  a  fact  that  has  not  itself 
been  generally  recognized.  Hence  this  confusion. 

The  first  step  toward  a  right  understanding  of  this  im- 
portant matter  must  be  to  disabuse  our  minds  of  the  idea 
that  the  being  of  God  is,  or  can  be  made,  in  any  degree  the 
subject  of  our  intellectual  apprehension.  This  proposition 
will,  of  course,  seem  a  very  strange  one  to  the  reader  who 
assumes  our  intellectual  apprehension  to  be  our  only 
mode  of  apprehension.  The  error  lies  in  this  very  as- 
sumption, the  unfounded  nature  of  which  I  shall  endeavor 
to  show. 

A  disposition  still  exists  among  theologians,  although 
less  strongly  marked  than  it  has  formerly  been,  to  exalt 
the  reason,  and  in  some  vague  way  to  rely  upon  it  as  a 
source  of  spiritual  knowledge.  In  this  theologians  have 
only  followed  the  prevailing  philosophy.  They  have  per- 
severingly  tried  to  find  in  the  reason  the  means  of  reaching 
the  unseen,  of  attaining  a  knowledge  of  what  has  been 
called  the  supernatural.  In  this  they  have  repeated  the 
folly  of  the  builders  of  Babel,  apparently  comprehending 
as  little  as  they  the  nature  of  the  structure  that  shall 
"  reach  unto  heaven."  Mechanical  science  has  made  clear 


158  THE  REVELATION  OF  GOD. 

the  futility  of  all  such  efforts.  It  shows  us  that  the  mental 
processes,  which,  in  common  parlance,  men  call  the  exer- 
cise of  the  understanding,  do  not  afford  the  means  of 
arriving  at  any  truth  -except  in  the  region  of  pure  mathe- 
matics ;  that,  with  the  exception  of  these  ideal  truths,  all 
realities,  both  those  of  a  physical  and  those  of  a  spiritual 
nature,  are  revealed  to  us  in  other  ways.  It  shows  us  still 
more  than  this,  namely,  that  respecting  all  realities  of  a 
physical  nature,  our  reasoning  needs  to  have  its  errors  cor- 
rected by  observation  at  every  step.  Now,  the  speculative 
mind  loves  to  get  far  away  from  these  physical  fields,  into 
regions  where  it  is  secure  from  these  tests  of  observation. 
But  the  analogies  of  mechanical  science  follow  it  there. 
There  is  no  escape  from  the  searching  question :  If  in 
things  with  which  we  are  most  familiar,  and  where  the 
truth  is  well  established,  it  is  not  possible  for  the  mind  to 
advance  one  step  alone  without  the  certainty  of  falling  into 
error,  what  confidence  is  it  possible  for  us,  as  reasonable 
beings,  to  put  in  speculations  of  the  understanding,  or  so- 
called  intuitions  of  the  reason,  where  our  vagaries  cannot 
be  corrected  ?  In  these  highest  departments  of  truth  also 
it  is  evident  that  we  must  seek  for,  and  recognize,  and 
submit  to,  the  guidance  of  revelation,  if  we  would  have 
our  belief  here  rested  on  the  same  secure  foundation,  on 
which  we  have  rested  our  belief  of  physical  truth.  The 
mode  of  revelation  of  the  highest  spiritual  truth  becomes, 
then,  the  subject  of  supreme  interest. 

It  occurs  at  once  to  one  educated  in  the  prevailing 
philosophy,  and  whose  thought  is  bounded  by  its  formu- 
las, who  cannot  receive  into  his  mind  the  truth  of  the 
exclusive  perceptive  power  of  love  in  its  own  province,  to 
ask:  "  How  can  I  love  God,  unless  I  first  have  a  belief  in 
his  being,  which  belief  I  arrive  at  by  the  exercise  of  my 
reason  or  intelligence  ?  "  This  question  appears  unan- 


THE  REVELATION  OF  GOD.  159 

swerable  to  those  who  have  been  educated  to  regard  love 
as  a  mere  sentiment,  and  to  rely  on  what  they  call  their 
intellectual  faculties  as  the  only  means  of  knowledge. 
According  to  this  philosophy,  the  knowledge  must  exist 
first,  obtained  in  some  other  way,  before  the  sentiment 
can  have  any  object  for  its  exercise. 

We  observe  that  this  question  assumes  belief  in  the 
being  of  God  to  be  one  thing,  and  love  for  him  to  be  quite 
another  and  a  subsequent  thing.  Such  a  conception  of 
the  subject  is  apparently  fortified  by  the  fact,  that  the 
existence  of  God  is  confessed  by  very  many  persons,  who 
yet  profess  to  feel  little  or  no  regard  for  Him.  The  answer 
to  this  question  is,  that  the  imaginary  being,  of  whom  men 
can  form  an  intellectual  idea,  is  not  God.  The  under- 
standing leads  men  astray  here  as  completely  as  we  have 
seen  it  to  do  in  the  search  after  physical  truth.  The  God 
of  the  understanding  is  the  work  of  men's  imagination. 
He  is  not  their  Creator,  but  their  creature.  They  have 
created  him,  and  have  made  him  a  being  like  themselves, 
and  so  quite  within  their  comprehension  ;  only  greater 
than  they,  just  as  the  forces  manifested  in  nature  are 
greater  than  those  which  they  can  exert.  It  is  evident  on 
reflection  that  the  mental  process  by  which  this  imaginary 
deity  is  formed  is  not  to  be  distinguished  from  the  process 
by  which  men  create  idols,  and  attribute  their  own  quali- 
ties to  them.  The  utmost  that  our  God-makers  do,  or  can 
do,  is  to  select  their  own  good  qualities  or  ideals,  or  those 
which  they  believe  to  be  such,  and  in  which  belief  they 
are  always  in  a  greater  or  lesser  degree  mistaken,  and  to 
invest  their  handiwork  with  these.  Each  person  has  his 
own  ideal,  and  so  makes  his  own  God,  about  whom  his 
conceptions  are  generally  pretty  definite.  In  the  study 
of  all  things  in  nature  we  are  directly  lost  in  mysteries. 
We  may,  perhaps,  make  as  much  progress  toward  a  com- 


l6o  THE  REVELATION  OF  GOD. 

plete  understanding  of  common  objects  of  sense,  as  a 
miner  makes  toward  reaching  the  centre  of  the  earth. 
But  when  we  approach  the  infinite  mystery  of  the  being 
of  God,  we  are  content  to  create  in  imagination  a 
being  adequate  to  make  and  to  do  what  we  observe  to 
be  made  and  done,  and  to  say :  "  This  is  God."  This  is 
the  work  of  what  we  call  the  intellect,  by  which  we  mean 
here  the  imagination.  As  if  conscious,  however,  of  the 
imposition,  men  are  inspired  by  this  imaginary  deity  to 
no  act  of  worship,  or  feeling  of  love,  or  exercise  of  faith. 
They  recognize  no  personal  relation  between  themselves 
and  their  handiwork. 

A  chief  cause  of  the  error  here  is  to  be  found  in  the  in- 
fluence of  human  analogies,  which,  when  pressed  too  far, 
are  always  misleading.  We  observe  concerning  our  fellow- 
beings,  that  in  order  that  we  shall  love  them,  we  must  first 
obtain  through  our  senses  evidence  of  their  existence.  We 
form  images  of  them  in  our  consciousness,  which  images 
are  determined  by  the  reality  before  us,  and  with  which 
images  we  then  proceed  to  associate  conduct  observed,  and 
sentiments  and  feelings,  which  we  attribute  to  them,  and 
which  are  limited  by  our  own.  Thus  we  naturally  get  a 
corresponding  idea  respecting  our  knowledge  of  God,  that 
we  must  first  form  an  image  of  God  in  our  minds  in  some 
way,  and  afterwards  come  to  love  Him.  It  is  necessary 
that  we  should  be  completely  freed  from  the  influence 
of  these  misleading  analogies.  Then  when  we  come 
to  look  for  the  process  of,  first,  the  intellectual  apprehen- 
sion of  God,  and,  second,  the  awakening  of  the  feeling  of 
love  for  the  Being  thus  intellectually  apprehended,  we 
find  there  is  no  such  process ;  but  our  only  possible 
apprehension  of  God  that  is  true,  in  the  degree  that  we 
are  able  to  form  it,  is  the  apprehension  which  is  formed 
by  the  recognition  of  love  alone. 


THE  REVELATION  OF  GOD.  l6l 

Science  affirms  God  to  be  the  unknowable  and  the  un- 
thinkable. In  this  declaration  science  is  right.  Its  error 
lies  in  paying  no  regard  to  the  real  mode  of  spiritual  per- 
ception, by  which  the  revelation  of  God  is  in  fact  made  to 
us,  and  which  is  the  only  possible  mode  of  such  revelation. 
But  this  conclusion  of  science,  that  the  human  intellect  is 
incapable  of  arriving  at  any  knowledge  of  God,  is  not  new. 
It  was  anticipated  long  ago.  "  Who  hath  known  the 
mind  of  the  Lord  ?  "  "  Canst  thou  by  searching  find  out 
God  ?  "  "  The  heavens  are  higher  than  the  earth,  so  are  my 
ways  higher  than  your  ways,  and  my  thoughts  than  your 
thoughts."  The  living  force  of  this  language,  and  of  other 
expressions  of  similar  import  in  the  Bible,  and  the  infinite 
depth  of  meaning  that  these  possess,  contrast  in  a  striking 
manner  with  the  lifeless  formulas  of  philosophic  construc- 
tion. The  latter  mark  the  hopeless  end  of  philosophic 
thought.  The  former  are  the  sublime  beginning  of  reve- 
lation. 

But  while  ignorant  of  the  true  mode  of  this  revelation, 
we  cry :  "  If  God  be,  indeed,  the  unknowable  and  the  un- 
thinkable, then  he  has  not  everywhere  revealed  himself  to 
us."  "  Then  it  is  not  true  that  our  whole  being,  with  all  its 
powers,  has  been  adapted  to  the  supreme  purpose  of  be- 
holding him."  Peace,  troubled  soul !  How  should  the 
infinite  be  revealed  to  the  finite  ?  A  very  slight  exercise 
of  the  understanding  would  seem  sufficient  to  show  how 
futile  the  search  after  God  must  be,  that  is  conducted 
within  the  limits  of  human  processes  of  thought.  If  man 
were  only  a  reasoning  machine,  then  mere  uniformity  of 
action  expressed  as  law  would  be  his  ultimate  conception. 
Then  it  is  certain  that  not  God  alone,  but  all  spiritual 
realities,  would  be  hidden  from  him.  For  him  they  would 
have  no  significance.  He  would  be  without  power  to  recog- 
nize their  existence. 


1 62  THE  REVELATION  OF  GOD. 

In  accordance  with  the  law  of  all  spiritual  perception, 
and,  indeed,  in  accordance  with  the  law  of  perception  uni- 
versally, we  perceive  the  being  of  God  only  through  the 
spontaneous  and  necessary  recognition  of  him  by  the  spirit 
in  its  activity  of  love.  As  all  the  manifestations  of  God, 
in  the  modes  of  force  and  truth  and  beauty,  have  their 
unity  in  love,  as  love  is  the  essence  of  the  divine  nature, 
and  the  motive  to  all  divine  conduct,  so  also  the  affec- 
tions constitute  the  whole  spiritual  nature  of  man,  and 
the  motive  to  all  his  activity.  If  these  are  in  their 
normal  state,  then  they  are  in  harmony  with  the  nature 
of  God,  and  the  spirit  necessarily  recognizes  His  univer- 
sal presence.  If  the  spiritual  nature  of  man  is  not  in 
complete  harmony  with  the  divine  nature,  as  indeed  it 
cannot  be,  then  it  can  recognize  God  only  in  a  degree, 
in  such  degree  as  it  is  able  to  form  the  image  or  ideal  of 
Him.  If  it  does  not  spontaneously  form  such  image  or 
ideal  in  any  degree,  then  it  must  be  dead  to  his  existence. 

For  the  correct  apprehension  of  this,  the  only  possible 
mode  of  the  divine  revelation,  it  is  necessary  at  first  that 
we  should  consider  man,  not  as  in  fact  he  is,  but  as  he 
would  be  in  his  normal  state  ;  a  state  in  which  universal 
love  is  the  ceaseless  animating  force,  in  which  every 
thought  is  suggested  by  love,  and  every  act  is  the  expres- 
sion of  love.  In  this  normal  state,  man  would  necessarily 
be  conscious,  above  all  other  things,  of  his  environment 
of  universal  love,  and  this  is  God. 

The  being  and  the  love  of  God  are  convertible  terms. 
This  was  true  of  the  divine  man.  It  would  also  be  true  of 
man  universally  in  his  normal  state,  which  we  are  now 
supposing.  In  this  state,  love  in  man  would  differ  from 
love  in  God  only  in  degree,  according  to  the  capacity  of 
his  nature,  love  in  God  being  infinite.  In  this  normal 
state,  man  would  receive  the  revelation  of  God,  in  becom- 


THE  REVELATION  OF  GOD.  163 

ing  conscious  of  the  universal  reciprocity  to  his  own  love. 
He  forms  no  conception.  He  only  loves.  Every  other 
being  is  equally  the  object  of  his  love.  He  is  conscious  of 
love  in  return  from  every  other  being.  Above  all  he  is 
conscious  of  an  environing  Being,  who  is  infinite  love. 
The  latter  recognition  becomes  necessary  from  the  fact 
that  in  this  state  man  has  been  made  in  the  spiritual 
image  of  God,  and  must  recognize  his  own  likeness  or 
ideal.  He  feels  the  spontaneous  and  supreme  impulse  to 
love,  and  also  the  corresponding  longing  for  love.  In  the 
complete  satisfying  of  this  longing  he  recognizes  infinite 
love,  and  becomes  aware  of  the  harmony  of  which  he 
forms  a  part.  The  conscious  particular  recognizes  its 
universal. 

In  this  normal  state,  the  spirit  must  see  God,  precisely 
as  the  open  eye  must  see  objects  in  nature,  or  as  the  mind 
must  recognize  familiar  truths,  and  that  for  the  same 
reason,  namely,  that  this  recognition,  and  consequent 
communion  and  joy,  are  the  very  purposes  for  which 
man's  spiritual  nature,  with  its  power  of  perception,  was 
given  him,  the  end  which  it  was  especially  adapted,  and 
which  it  was  evidently  intended,  to  serve.1 

God  having  been  first  revealed  in  the  spirit,  the  universe 
is  then  seen  to  be  the  manifestation  of  his  love,  and 
becomes  animate  with  his  presence.  Every  thing  then 
appears  in  its  true  character,  as  a  mode  of  the  endlessly 
varied  activity  of  infinite  love ;  and  the  spirit  rejoices, 
with  rapture  unspeakable,  as  a  being  receiving,  and 
responding  to,  and  so  communing  in  that  love. 

This  recognition  of  the  soul  is,  then,  the  mode  of  the 
revelation  of  God.  But  to  us,  in  our  abnormal  state,  this 
revelation  is,  of  necessity,  dim  and  obscure,  even  at  the 

J  For  the  remarkable  proof  of  this  necessary  recognition  that  is  afforded 
by  the  analogies  of  mechanical  science,  see  pages  199-201. 


164  THE  REVELATION  OF  GOD. 

best.  The  direct  and  immediate  recognition  of  God  by 
the  soul  is  feeble,  on  account  of  the  feeble  degree  in  which 
universal  love  is  developed  in  our  nature.  The  external 
perception  of  His  presence  is  necessarily  imperfect  in  the 
same  degree,  for  we  can  see  or  can  recognize,  without, 
only  those  spiritual  realities  that  we  have  already  felt 
within.  Among  men,  therefore,  the  revelation  of  God,  or 
the  spontaneous  recognition  of  God  in  the  soul,  must  be 
a  matter  of  degree,  according  to  the  development  in  this 
respect  of  each  spiritual  being.  In  this  degree,  and  in 
this  degree  only,  every  physical  sense  becomes  a  medium, 
through  which  the  sympathizing  spirit  recognizes  its  own 
image  or  ideal,  and  so  in  part  beholds  the  activity  of 
universal  love. 

It  should  be  observed  that,  while  to  man  in  his  normal 
state  the  recognition  of  God  must  be  complete  up  to  the 
full  capacity  of  his  nature,  still  this  recognition  can  never 
become  complete,  in  any  thing  like  the  absolute  sense  of 
that  term.  The  true  conception  of  perfect  beings  must 
doubtless  be  that  of  endless  growth,  with  always  an  ador- 
ing consciousness  of  depths  unfathomed  in  the  love  of 
God. 

The  idea  is  a  prevalent  one,  that  love  to  God  may  result 
as  an  effect  or  consequence  of  the  purely  intellectual  study 
of  his  works.  This  is  the  same  error  that  has  already  been 
exposed,  only  modified  in  its  mode  of  statement.  Strange 
as  it  may  at  first  seem,  the  fact  is,  that  where  love  to 
God,  or,  correctly  speaking,  that  love  by  the  spontaneous 
activity  of  which  God  is  recognized  or  revealed,  does  not 
already  exist,  in  some  degree  at  least,  the  effect  of  the 
study  of  His  works  is  invariably  to  hide  Him  more  and 
more  from  us. 

On  reflection,  the  necessity  for  this  result  becomes 
apparent,  and  it  affords  a  full  demonstration  of  the  cor- 


THE  REVELATION  OF  GOD.  165 

rectness  of  the  view  of  spiritual  revelation  that  is  here 
taken.  In  the  case  supposed  there  exists,  if  not  a  positive 
antagonism,  at  least  a  complete  want  of  sympathy  or 
harmony,  between  the  soul  and  God ;  and  therefore  the 
spirit  cannot  perceive  Him,  has  no  power  to  recognize 
His  existence. 

In  its  merely  intellectual  activity  the  spirit  of  man 
works  mechanically.  This  mechanism  itself  feels  no 
interest,  forms  no  purpose,  provides  no  impulse.  It  works 
in  any  direction  indifferently,  as  impelled  and  guided  by 
the  emotional  nature,  by  the  /,  by  love  or  hate,  in  the 
degree  of  its  development,  either  to  build  or  to  destroy. 
Even  in  the  study  of  nature  for  the  very  purpose  of  find- 
ing evidences  of  design  requiring  a  designer,  when  the 
thought  is  arrested  here,  the  mind  is  as  indifferent  as  is 
the  eye  to  the  shape  of  an  image  that  is  formed  within  it, 
or  the  hand  to  the  purpose  for  which  its  muscular  power 
is  being  exerted. 

Thus  it  is  clearly  shown  that  the  recognition  of  the 
being  of  God  does  not  wait,  or  in  any  manner  depend, 
upon  the  manifestation  of  God  to  our  senses.  On  the 
contrary,  this  recognition  must  have  been  made  by  the 
spirit  already,  in  the  only  possible  way,  namely,  by  the 
spontaneous  action  of  similar  love  existing  in  the  soul, 
responding  to  the  universal  environment  of  divine  love,  in 
order  that  the  sensible  expressions  of  the  love  of  God 
shall  be  discerned  at  all.  Otherwise  the  spirit  is  dead  to 
them. 

This  is  a  fact  of  ordinary  experience.  That  all  the 
common  and  familiar  operations  in  nature  are  in  reality 
the  manifestations  of  the  infinite  love  of  God,  in  its  cease- 
less activity,  is  an  idea  that  no  man,  whose  nature  is  not, 
at  least  in  some  degree,  in  harmony  with  the  divine 
nature,  is  able  to  entertain  for  an  instant.  That  all  force 


1 66  THE  REVELATION  OF  GOD. 

is  the  personal  act  of  the  omnipresent  God,  extending  not 
only  to  the  most  common  and  minute  things,  but,  more- 
over, in  every  thing  extending  to  where  minuteness  be- 
comes lost  in  infinity,  this  to  such  a  mind  is  foolishness. 
A  remarkable  feature  of  the  case  appears  in  the  fact,  to 
which  reference  has  already  been  made,  that  the  unvary- 
ing uniformity  of  all  natural  operations,  that  very  charac- 
teristic of  them  which  is  fundamental  in  our  idea  of  truth 
in  moral  beings,  which  is  the  necessary  expression  of 
eternal  faithfulness,  is  the  feature  that  operates  most 
effectually  to  hide  God  from  the  sight  of  men.  They 
jcould  recognize  superior  power  in  exceptional  phenomena  ; 
but  the  changeless  love  that  shines  in  the  life-giving  sun, 
this  they  cannot  see.  The  very  constancy  of  the  benefi- 
cent conduct  of  God  thus  absolutely  forms  a  barrier  to 
his  recognition. 

Again,  wherever  God  has  not  already  been  spiritually 
recognized,  the  perfection  manifested  in  every  part  of  the 
creation,  and  the  harmony  that  pervades  all  natural  opera- 
tions, produce  on  the  mind  the  same  blinding  effect. 
While  the  illumined  spirit,  united  with  God  in  the  har- 
mony of  universal  love,  rejoices  in  the  manifest  glory  of 
the  Infinite  Father,  the  merely  philosophic  mind,  accord- 
ing to  the  present  limited  use  of  this  term,  or  the  mind 
that  is  shut  up  to  merely  intellectual  processes,  sees  only 
the  ordinary  and  regular  operations  of  nature.  With  this 
absolutely  impersonal  and  therefore  meaningless  expres- 
sion, what  is  now  called  the  philosophic  mind  rests  quite 
satisfied.  Beyond  this  it  feels  no  interest,  and  therefore 
it  can  discover  nothing. 

If,  then,  we  can  only  be  freed  from  the  influence  of  a 
false  education,  which  has  itself  been  directed  by  blind 
philosophy,  we  shall  be  able  to  perceive  clearly  enough, 
that  our  belief  in,  or  knowledge  of,  the  true  and  living 


THE  REVELATION  OF  GOD.  l6/ 

God  cannot  precede,  but  must  wholly  consist  in,  the  spir- 
itual recognition  of  the  soul  in  love  ;  and  that  the  effect 
of  this  sympathetic  union  with  God  is,  that  the  mind 
becomes  illumined  to  see  that  which  was  before  invisible, 
to  which  it  had  been  completely  insensible,  and  that  now, 
under  the  impulse  of  normally  awakened  affections,  the 
thought  can  no  longer  stop  nor  be  arrested,  until  it  has 
penetrated  into  the  universal  presence  of  God,  and 
contemplates  in  all  things  the  working  of  his  infinite  love. 

The  truth  of  the  view  that  has  been  here  presented  is 
shown  in  its  power  to  clear  away  the  cloud  of  difficulties 
with  which  this  subject  has  been  Darkened,  and  which 
have  produced  a  disastrous  effect  on  many  minds  that 
have  been  earnestly  seeking  for  the  light. 

Prominent  among  these  has  been  the  difficulty  of  iden- 
tifying the  God  of  nature  with  the  God  of  grace.  The 
God  of  nature,  or  God  as  revealed  in  nature,  has  been 
assumed  to  be  apprehended  by  us  through  the  intellectual 
activity  of  the  mind  alone.  The  result  of  this  assumption 
is  a  conception  of  mere  uniformity  of  action,  without  a 
moral  purpose,  which,  in  spite  of  what  is  called  the  science 
of  Natural  Theology,  it  is  difficult  to  connect  with  the 
idea  of  a  Being  at  all. 

A  chasm  has  seemed  to  separate  the  God  of  nature, 
thus  intellectually  apprehended,  from  the  infinitely  loving, 
merciful,  and  forgiving  Father,  who  is  revealed  to  us  in  the 
Bible.  And  well  it  may  have  done.  For  the  supposed 
God,  thus  intellectually  apprehended,  has  no  existence. 
This  is  another  of  the  fictions  of  the  human  mind.  The 
living  and  true  God  is  not  intellectually  apprehended.  It 
suits  human  pride  to  assume  that  the  intellect  of  man  must 
have  something  to  do  with  our  perception  of  God ;  but 
human  pride  is  itself  the  great  obstacle  to  this  perception. 
All  truth  must  be  sought  in  the  deepest  humility.  This 


1 68  THE  REVELATION  OF  GOD. 

is  preeminently  the  case  with  the  highest  truth  of  all. 
It  is  God  dwelling  in  us,  actually  present  in  our  conscious- 
ness, whom  we  recognize.  The  Apostle  John  expressed 
the  truth  exactly  when  he  said  :  "  He  that  loveth  not 
knoweth  not  God,  for  God  is  love." 

The  spontaneous  activity  of  the  spirit  in  love  is  to  be 
observed  in  little  children.  All  that  the  conscious  spirit 
does,  before  it  can  reflect  or  understand,  and  prior  to  any 
experience,  is  to  love  and  trust.  The  latter  act  rests  upon 
the  assumption  of  universal  love  like  its  own.  Manifesta- 
tions of  these  feelings  of  love  and  trust  constitute  the 
child's  first  signs  of  recognition.  That  love  and  trust  are 
natural  and  intuitive  is  shown  in  the  universal  fact,  that 
the  child  is  delighted  by  manifestations  of  responsive  love, 
and  is  grieved  at  the  want  of  them. 

We  are  inspired  with  new  admiration  when  we  observe 
that,  as  it  is  the  most  important  of  all  things  that  we 
should  have  this  knowledge  of  God,  or  this  power  to 
recognize  Him,  so  the  activity  of  the  spirit  in  love,  by 
which  activity,  just  in  the  degree  that  it  assumes  a  univer- 
sal form,  God  becomes  spontaneously  recognized,  is  the 
earliest  of  all  spiritual  activities  to  be  developed  and 
exercised.  So  also  all  the  endearing  relations  of  life  are 
symbols  of  the  far  closer  relation  of  the  soul  to  God.  As 
these  relations  appear  in  succession  from  the  opening  to 
the  close  of  our  earthly  existence,  unsealing  successive 
fountains  of  happiness,  they  are  adapted  and  evidently 
intended  to  preserve  the  love  and  trust  of  infancy  un- 
blighted,  and  to  lead  it  to  the  recognition  of  God  as  its 
supreme  object.  Here  we  recognize  the  meaning  of  the 
command  of  the  Christ,  that  we  must  become  as  little 
children.  We  see  this,  like  all  the  commands  of  the  Bible, 
to  be  merely  the  expression  of  a  command  that  exists  in 
the  nature  of  things.  Care  and  trust  are  the  reciprocal 


THE  REVELATION  OF  GOD.  I  GO 

expressions  of  the  love,  respectively,  of  protecting  and 
dependent  beings.  The  former  expression  of  love  actu- 
ally does  exist,  the  latter  is  possible  to  exist,  between 
God  and  man  in  infinite  degree. 

In  concluding  these  observations,  attention  is  called  to 
the  fact  that  the  revelation  of  God,  like  the  revelations  of 
inferior  truths,  is  of  a  nature  adapted  to  bring  to  the 
spirit  receiving  it  full  and  entire  conviction.  The  spirit 
rests  in  this  sure  belief.  This  contrast  is  to  be  noted 
between  this  revelation  and  all  superstitious  beliefs,  that 
when  the  revelation  of  God  has  been  received  in  this 
manner,  then  the  more  comprehensive  the  knowledge, 
and  the  more  profound  the  intelligence,  the  more  certain 
becomes  the  perception  of  its  truth. 

It  is  further  to  be  observed,  that  we  can  never  rise  above 
the  analogies  that  are  afforded  by  mechanical  science.  As 
in  that  science,  so  here  also,  experiment  is  the  only  source 
of  knowledge.  Here  as  there,  men  can  only  idly  pretend 
to  reason  about  that  which  they  have  not  experimentally 
established.  The  personal  relation  of  the  soul  of  man  with 
God  is  something  that  can  only  be  known  experimentally. 
It  is  obviously  impossible  for  the  mind  that  has  not 
received  the  knowledge  of  God  by  the  recognition  of  his 
infinite  and  universal  love  to  know  any  thing  about  Him. 
And  for  such  a  mind  to  deny  the  existence  of  God,  or  to 
•discuss  the  subject  of  his  being,  or  to  entertain  any 
opinion  whatever  concerning  it,  or  respecting  the  relations 
between  man  and  God,  is  clearly  just  as  absurd,  as  we 
have  seen  it  to  be  for  one  to  reason  about  the  existence  of 
objects  which  are  not  revealed  to  us  through  a  process  of 
reasoning,  or,  on  the  other  hand,  for  one  vho  knows  only 
about  objects  which  are  revealed  through  the  physical 
senses  to  express,  an-  opinion  respecting  ideal  truths. 


THE   VERBAL   REVELATION. 


WE  have  now  finished  our  brief  and  necessarily  very 
general  survey  of  the  physical  and  spiritual  modes  of 
revelation.  These  modes  have  been  seen  to  vary,  as 
is  rendered  necessary  by  the  varied  nature  of  the  truths 
revealed.  We  have  observed  that  every  bodily  sense,  and 
every  mode  of  activity  of  the  spirit,  are  called  into  exer- 
cise, to  serve  as  media  for  the  revelation  to  man  of  physi- 
cal and  spiritual  truth,  and  that  each  one  of  these  in  its 
office,  and  the  spirit  in  its  unity,  are  adapted  for  the  trans- 
mission and  the  reception  or  apprehension  of  every  form 
of  truth.  This  adaptation  includes,  of  course,  historical 
truth,  which  has  not  yet  been  considered. 

There  remains  an  auxiliary  to  these  means  for  the  com- 
munication to  us  of  revelation  in  its  varied  forms,  and  that 
is  the  gift  of  language.  Verbal  revelation  of  the  highest 
spiritual  truth  is  what  we  should  naturally  look  for.  If 
all  truth  is  revealed  to  man,  and  every  thing  is  employed 
as  a  means  of  imparting  this  revelation,  and  our  senses 
and  our  mental  powers  have  their  supreme  use  as  the 
media  for  its  reception,  all  which  we  have  seen  to  be  the 
case,  then  it  is  at  least  a  reasonable  inference  that  the  gift 
of  language  must  also  be  employed  for  the  same  great 
purpose. 

Language  has  this  supreme  use,  that  it  is  adapted  for 
the  communication  of  truths  of  the  highest  consequence, 


THE  VERBAL  REVELATION.  17  I 

which,  being  historical,  could  not  be  imparted  to  us  in 
any  other  way,  as  well  as  of  those  truths,  to  the  perpetual 
revelation  of  which  in  nature  we  are,  in  our  abnormal 
state,  nearly  or  quite  insensible. 

We  have  that  which  claims  our  acceptance  as  such 
verbal  revelation.  We  have  a  book,  which  purports  to  be 
the  actual  employment,  by  the  Giver  of  language  Himself, 
of  this  highest  physical  gift  for  its  highest  possible  use. 
The  question  presents  itself:  Is  this  book  to  be  accepted 
as  true  ?  Written  by  men,  as  necessarily  it  must  have 
been,  did  the  Bible,  nevertheless,  emanate  from  the  Infi- 
nite Mind,  the  source  of  all  truth  ?  In  its  essential  teach- 
ings is  the  Bible  the  word  of  God  ?  For  the  determina- 
tion of  this  question,  our  present  subject  suggests  a  line  of 
inquiry  that  seems  to  be  fundamental  and  searching.  It 
suggests  the  question  :  Is  this  book  in  harmony  with  the 
physical  revelation  ?  Is  its  language  the  verbal  expression 
of  truth,  as  this  is  found  to  exist  in  nature?  Do  its  com- 
mands call  for  the  conduct  that  would  be  natural  to  moral 
beings  in  their  normal  condition?  In  brief,  is  the  God  of 
nature  also  the  God  of  the  Bible  ? 

The  God  of  nature  is  seen  to  be  a  Being  of  infinite, 
universal,  and  changeless  love.  Having  first  been  spiritu- 
ally recognized,  He  is  then  seen  to  fill  all  things.  These 
are  then  apprehended  as  the  universal  manifestation  to 
man  of  the  being  and  nature  of  God.  Is  the  same  mani- 
festation contained  also  in  the  Book? 

When  we  approach  this  subject,  the  fact  that  first  pre- 
sents itself  is,  that  the  Bible  alone  declares  the  existence  of 
one  God  ;  not  of  a  divided  sovereignty,  nor  of  inferior 
divinities,  but  of  one  Jehovah.  Nature  declares  this  to  be 
the  truth.  The  unity  and  harmony  everywhere  observable 
forbid  any  other  supposition.  Science  has  been  truly  said 
to  be  the  grave  of  polytheism.  At  the  outset,  we  find  this 


172  THE   VERBAL   REVELATION. 

fundamental  agreement  between  the  Bible  and  physical 
revelation. 

Again,  the  Bible  declares  God  to  be  a  spirit,  whom  no 
power  has  been  given  us  to  discern,  admitting  of  no  man- 
ner of  similitude,  of  whom  our  spirits,  in  their  form-con- 
structing activity,  can  create  no  image  ;  but  with  whom 
we  have  relations  far  more  close  than  we  are  able  to  con- 
ceive, and  with  whom,  moreover,  our  spirits  may  have  im- 
mediate personal  communion,  the  intimacy  of  which  has 
no  limit  except  that  which  is  imposed  by  the  imperfect 
nature  of  our  love,  or,  in  other  words,  by  the  limited  de- 
gree of  this  form  of  our  spiritual  activity. 

On  this  point,  the  corroboration  afforded  by  nature,  so 
far  as  it  extends,  is  remarkable.  Nature,  by  all  its  teach- 
ings, prepares  us  to  recognize  and  admit  the  fact,  that 
spiritual  being  is  entirely  removed  from  the  sphere  of  our 
sense  perceptions,  without  having  our  belief  in  the  reality 
of  spiritual  being  impaired  thereby  in  the  least  degree. 
It  does  this  by  showing  the  exceedingly  limited  range  of 
our  perceptions  even  of  physical  forms  of  being.  When 
we  know  that  all  matter  passes  into  forms  and  states  in 
which  it  disappears  before  our  eyes,  and  that  the  sensibil- 
ity of  our  organs  of  sight  and  of  hearing  exists  only  within 
narrow  limits,  then  we  realize  that,  while  we  possess  the 
full  extent  and  degree  of  perceptive  power '  that  are  re- 
quired for  all  our  uses,  still,  considered  absolutely,  this  ex- 
tent and  degree  are  very  limited  indeed,  even  with  respect 
to  what  appears  to  us  as  material  things.  A  fortiori,  then, 
spiritual  being  must  be  deeply  hidden  from  our  sight.  The 
direct  tendency  and  effect  of  physical  research  is,  to  check 
human  presumption,  and  to  induce  an  humble  and  reverent 
spirit,  in  view  of  the  exceedingly  narrow  limits  of  our 
powers  and  our  knowledge,  and  the  infinity  of  even  physical 
truth,  and,  above  all,  in  view  of  our  helpless  dependence 


THE  VERBAL  REVELATION,  173 

upon  the  unseen  environment  of  our  being,  whatever,  in 
that  unity  to  which  all  its  manifestations  point,  this  envi- 
ronment may  be.  We  are  thus  prepared  to  accept,  as  in 
strict  consonance  with  the  nature  of  things,  the  declaration 
that  God  is  and  must  be  very  far  removed  even  from  our 
conception,  while  we  retain  the  absolute  certainty  of  his 
omnipresent  being,  and  recognize  the  sublime  truth  of 
that  descriptive  exclamation  in  the  Psalms :  "  Who  cov- 
erest  thyself  with  light,  as  with  a  garment,"  light  being 
that  garment  of  God  which  we  know  to  fill  the  universe. 

With  respect  to  the  eternal  self-existence  and  omni- 
presence of  God,  nature  and  the  Bible  are  in  full  accord. 
Both  alike  also  represent  God  as  a  Being  of  infinite  and 
unchangeable  truth.  The  harmony  between  the  Bible  and 
nature  in  this  respect  of  truth  has  been  set  forth  in  an 
earlier  paper. 

Although  many  expressions  in  the  Bible  can  be  wrested, 
and  have  been  wrested,  by  men  to  an  opposite  sense,  still 
the  totality  of  its  teaching  unquestionably  represents  God 
to  be  a  Being  of  universal  and  unchangeable  love.  In- 
deed, the  love  of  God  toward  the  whole  race  of  man 
is  taught  and  exhibited  in  the  Bible  in  such  a  remarkable 
manner,  that  the  mass  of  Christians,  in  contemplating  these 
teachings  and  these  exhibitions,  even  when  they  strive  to 
confine  infinite  love  within  the  limits  of  their  comprehen- 
sion, and  while  they  cloud  it  by  imputing  to  God  the  vin- 
dictiveness  of  their  own  dispositions,  are  still  habituated  to 
overlook,  for  the  most  part,  the  harmonious  exhibition  of 
that  love,  by  which  they  are  surrounded.  The  beauty  and 
the  glory  of  the  divine  love,  as  revealed  in  the  Bible,  render 
Christians  in  a  large  degree  blind  to  the  necessarily  equal 
beauty  and  glory  of  the  same  love,  as  revealed  in  nature.1 

1  One  who  cannot  see — what  physical  science  as  hitherto  limited  does  not 
teach — the  love  of  God,  as  this  love  is  manifested  in  nature,  misses  the  grand 


1/4  THE  VERBAL  REVELATION. 

The  foregoing  points  of  agreement  may  be  summed  up 
in  the  pregnant  statement,  that  the  revelation  of  God 
made  in  the  Bible  is  in  every  respect  fully  adequate  to  the 
revelation  of  Him  that  is  made  in  His  works.  In  these 
respects  the  Bible  stands  alone,  in  striking  contrast  with 
all  other  recorded  thought.  No  other  composition  meets 
any  of  these  demands,  except  so  far  as  such  compositions 
have  obviously  been  derived  from  the  Bible  itself. 

It  is  next  to  be  noted  that,  although  the  Bible  was  com- 
pleted long  before  the  beginning  of  scientific  inquiry,  still 
the  discoveries  of  science  have  not  rendered  it  obsolete. 
On  the  contrary,  these  discoveries  have  enabled  the  mean- 
ing and  force  of  much  of  its  language  to  be  better  under- 
stood. It  is  hardly  possible  at  the  present  day  to  conceive 
the  ignorance  of  physical  truth,  or  the  false  conceptions 
respecting  physical  phenomena,  or  the  limited  range  of 
thought  concerning  all  this  class  of  subjects,  that  existed 
universally  during  all  the  period  within  which  the  several 
books  of  the  Bible  were  written.  The  form  of  the  earth 
had  not  even  become  a  subject  of  inquiry.  Respecting  its 
size,  curiosity  did  not  anywhere  extend  beyond  the  small 
portion  of  it  that  was  known.  Its  age  was  supposed,  by 
the  few  who  had  any  thought  about  it,  to  be  measured  by 
a  few  generations  of  men.  The  speculations  of  Pythag- 
oras were,  apparently,  without  appreciable  influence,  and 
aside  from  these,  the  only  conception  respecting  the  earth 
that  was  held  with  any  degree  of  distinctness  was,  that  it 

fundamental  feature  of  the  harmony  between  the  two  modes  of  revelation. 
Science  is  progressive.  Its  tendency  is  in  the  direction  of  comprehensive- 
ness and  spirituality,  towards  the  recognition  of  the  fact  that  spiritual  truth 
is  fundamental  also  in  nature.  But  it  would  obviously  be  irrational  to  look 
for  entire  harmony  between  religion  and  science  in  its  present  stage,  in 
which  this  recognition  has  not  been  reached  ;  and  it  would  be  still  more 
irrational  to  assume  as  standards  of  comparison  between  religion  and  science 
scientific  hypotheses,  which  are  considered  by  the  highest  scientific  authorities 
to  be  only  guesses  at  truth.  When  science  in  its  completeness,  not  of  attain- 
ment but  of  purpose,  shnll  appear  by  the  side  of  religion  in  its  purity,  lo  ! 
so  far  as  science  extends,  these  will  bo  seen  to  be  one. 


THE  VERBAL  REVELATION.  175 

formed  the  centre  of  all  things,  and  that  a  solid  firmament, 
in  which  the  sun  and  moon  and  stars  were  set,  revolved 
around  it  every  day.  The  whole  Bible  was  written  under 
these  infantile  conditions,  of  mistaken  conceptions  and 
extreme  limitation  of  thought. 

Since  that  time,  on  the  one  hand  we  have  learned  the 
obscure  rank  of  the  earth  among  the  hosts  of  heaven,  and 
on  the  other  hand  the  thoughts  of  men  have  become  en- 
larged, until  human  conceptions  are  lost  in  the  infinities 
of  space  and  time.  But  we  have  not  outgrown  the  Bible. 
There  appears  to  be  a  remarkable  likeness  between  this 
Book  and  the  nature  of  things  in  this  respect :  The  mean- 
ing that  is  conveyed  to  our  minds  by  the  Bible,  in  all 
its  allusions  to  physical  phenomena,  expands  just  in  the 
degree  in  which  our  conceptions  of  the  phenomena 
expand.  It  seems  as  if  both  the  description  and 
the  phenomena  were  limited  to  us  in  the  same  way, 
namely,  by  our  capacity  to  comprehend  them.  The 
unique  character  of  the  language  of  the  Bible  in  this 
respect  also  becomes  strikingly  evident,  when  this  Book 
is  contrasted  with  any  other  writing. 

The  Bible  contains  one  apparently  distinct  expression 
of  the  ignorance  of  physical  truth,  and  disposition  to 
fable,  of  the  age  in  which  it  was  written.  This  is  the 
account  of  the  sun  and  moon  standing  still  at  the  com- 
mand of  Joshua.  Our  argument  unquestionably  requires 
that  the  difficulty  in  the  way  of  accepting  the  Bible  as  the 
inspired  Word  of  God,  which  is  presented  to  many  sincere 
minds  by  this  account,  should  be  removed.  The  correct 
interpretation  of  the  passage  seems  to  be  sufficient  for 
this  purpose. 

Until  quite  recently,  the  Christian  world  and  the  scep- 
tical world  have  agreed  in  holding  to  the  literal  reading  of 
this  account.  The  Roman  Church  denounced  the  Coper- 


176  THE   VERBAL  REVELATION. 

nican  theory  of  the  solar  system,  and  compelled  its  first 
great  advocate,  Galileo,  whether  by  torture  or  by  threat 
of  torture  is  unknown  and  is  immaterial,  to  abjure  it  as  a 
heresy ;  because  this  theory  would  render  necessary  the 
cessation  of  the  rotation  of  the  earth  on  its  axis,  in  order 
that  the  sun  should  have  stood  still  upon  Gibeon,  and  the 
moon  in  the  valley  of  Ajalon. 

The  position  respecting  this  passage,  which,  almost  to 
the  present  time,  has  been  held  by  all  Christian  teachers, 
has  been  well  expressed  by  one  who  still  holds  fast  to  the 
lessons  of  his  infancy,  as  follows :  "  Believing  that  the 
Creator  of  a  system  can  arrest  the  operation  of  laws  im- 
posed upon  it  by  Himself,  I  see  no  necessity  to  doubt  the 
truth  of  the  Scripture  record." 

On  the  other  hand,  Professor  Tyndall  has  called  atten- 
tion to  the  obvious  and  striking  irreconcilability  of  such 
an  inconceivable  waste  of  energy,  as  is  involved  in  the 
literal  interpretation  of  this  passage,  with  the  uniform 
economy  of  nature.  On  this  well-founded  criticism  of 
this  single  account,  taken  literally,  he  has  rested  his  ob- 
jection to  the  general  credibility  of  miracles.  He  has  not 
told  us  why  he  selected  this  account.  The  reason  is, 
however,  evident.  No  other  one  would  answer  the  pur- 
pose. No  account  of  a  miracle  in  the  Bible,  this  being 
left  out  of  view,  is  open  to  this  criticism.  On  the  contrary, 
this  account  presents  in  this  respect  a  remarkable  contrast 
to  every  record  of  a  miracle.  In  these  the  general  feature 
is  the  production  of  effects  by  the  employment  of  appar- 
ently insufficient  means.  The  case  was  a  singularly  unfavor- 
able one  for  deducing  a  general  conclusion  from  a  single 
observation.  The  account  selected  for  observation  is  ob- 
viously exceptional. 

Modern  criticism  has  shed  a  new  light  upon  this  passage 
which  has  given  to  our  literal  and  prosaic  minds  such  a 


THE  VERBAL  REVELATION.  1/7 

world  of  trouble.  That  the  view  to  be  presented  may  be 
clearly  seen,  it  is  only  necessary  to  bear  in  mind  that  the 
account  contains  these  words:  "  Is  not  this  written  in  the 
book  of  Jasher  ?  "  These  words  declare  the  origin  of  the 
account,  and  they  also  declare,  what  is  of  conclusive  value, 
that  it  did  not  form  a  part  of  the  contemporaneous  record 
of  the  event. 

I  learn  from  an  eminent  Oriental  scholar,  Rev.  James 
Douglas,  D.D.,  that  this  description,  of  the  sun  and  moon 
standing  still  at  the  command  of  Joshua,  is  considered  by 
scholars,  who  are  familar  with  the  new  department  of  Bib- 
lical interpretation  known  as  Orientalism,  to  be  nothing 
more  than  a  hyperbole  of  Oriental  imagery,  a  highly  poeti- 
cal way  of  saying  that  they  had  a  long  day  of  slaughter; 
that,  as  such  poetical  description,  it  was  at  a  later  day  in- 
troduced into  the  narrative;  and  that  the  Oriental  mind 
never  attached  to  it  a  literal  meaning,  any  more  than  it 
did  to  the  declaration  that  the  stars  in  their  courses 
fought  against  Sisera. 

A  view  substantially  similar  has  been  expressed  by  the 
Rev.  W.  P.  Breed,  D.D.  Dr.  Breed  says:  "  I  am  inclined 
to  think  that  the  book  of  Jasher  was  a  book  of  national 
songs,  and  this  is  simply  a  quotation  from  it,  expressing, 
in  a  highly  wrought  imaginative  lyric,  the  fact  that  by  the 
aid  of  Heaven  as  much  was  done  by  Israel  in  one  day  as 
otherwise  would  have  required  at  least  two  days."  A  simi- 
lar view  is  adopted  by  the  best  modern  German  commenta- 
tors. Lange  says:  "  We  have  to  consider  here  an  inserted 
passage."  "  The  standing  still  of  the  sun  and  moon  is  no 
more  to  be  understood  literally  than  is  the  fighting  of  the 
stars,  the  melting  of  mountains,  rending  the  heavens, 
skipping  of  mountains,  or  bowing  the  heavens.  It  is  the 
language  of  poetry  that  we  have  to  interpret,  and  poetry, 
too,  of  the  most  figurative  and  vehement  kind,  which 


1/8  THE  VERBAL  REVELATION. 

honors  and  celebrates  Joshua's  confidence  in  God  in  the 
midst  of  the  strife,  and  his  assurance  of  victory." 

This  natural  interpretation  of  this  language,  as  merely 
a  bold  poetic  figure  of  speech,  seems  certain  in  the  end  to 
be  accepted  as  the  correct  one.  All  lovers  of  truth  must 
come  ultimately  to  rejoice  that  the  truth  has  been  deter- 
mined in  this  instance.  Meantime  it  is  natural  to  expect 
that  the  extinguishment  of  this  passage  as  a  literal  de- 
scription will  be  lamented  and  contested  by  two  extremely 
different  classes — by  those  Christians  who  have  loved  to 
dwell  upon  such  a  supposed  stupendous  instance  of  Al- 
mighty interposition,  and  by  the  whole  race  of  sceptics, 
who  see  their  great  gun  silenced. 

It  is  to  be  observed,  that  in  the  Bible  the  subject  of 
physical  phenomena  is  not  avoided,  but  on  the  contrary, 
and  especially  in  the  poetical  portions,  these  phenomena 
are  frequently  dwelt  upon,  and  that  in  language  that  is 
correct,  and  is  of  a  character  always  so  elevated,  and  often 
so  sublime,  as  to  stand  in  marked  contrast  with  all  other 
compositions,  even  to  the  present  day.  I  wish  here  to  re- 
vert to  the  fact,  and  to  dwell  more  particularly  upon  it, 
that  the  discoveries  of  science,  and  the  consequent  en- 
largement of  the  conceptions  and  comprehension  of  men, 
have  been  required,  before  the  real  meaning  and  force  of 
much  of  this  language  in  the  Bible  could,  in  any  proper 
degree,  be  apprehended.  Science  thus  compels  us  to  de- 
clare respecting  this  language,  that  it  could  not  have  had 
its  real  origin  in  the  minds  of  men. 

The  fact  is  one  that  commands  our  attention,  that  the 
most  exalted  intellect  can  find  no  language  so  fit  as  that 
of  the  Bible,  in  which  to  express  the  emotions  that  are 
kindled  by  the  contemplation  of  these  overwhelming 
physical  truths.  This  language  has  been  found  uniformly 
consistent  with,  and  expressive  of,  the  highest  conceptions 


THE  VERBAL  REVELATION.  179 

that  men  can  form,  respecting  the  physical  creation,  as 
well  as  respecting  God  as  its  Creator.  In  each  of  these 
respects  the  language  of  the  Bible  is  beyond  all  measure 
above  that  of  any  other  composition. 

There  is  yet  a  deeper  reason  for  the  satisfaction  that  is 
derived  from  the  language  of  the  Bible,  in  its  references 
to  physical  phenomena.  The  Bible  is  the  only  book  in 
which  these  phenomena  are  referred  directly  to  God,  and 
are  described  as  being  His  personal  acts.  All  other  books 
are  written  in  phenomenal  language.  Apparently  they 
must  be  so.  We  seem  to  be  shut  up  to  the  philosophy  of 
appearances,  and  to  be  under  the  necessity  of  describing 
all  operations  and  events  in  nature,  as  if  they  were  self- 
directed.  We  have,  however,  intuitive  feelings  that  rebel 
against  this  necessity.  These  feelings  have  doubtless  led 
to  the  fiction  of  nature  and  her  works.  The  real  satisfac- 
tion that  is  felt  in  reading  the  language  of  the  Bible,  in 
which  God  is  himself  presented  to  us  as  the  everywhere- 
present  actor  in  physical  phenomena,  arises,  undoubtedly, 
in  a  great  degree,  from  our  recognition  of  its  truth  in  this 
respect. 

An  obvious,  and  at  the  same  time  an  impressive,  in- 
stance of  identical  truth  in  its  spiritual  and  its  physical 
applications,  and  one  also  which  affords  a  notable  illustra- 
tion of  the  general  fact,  that  the  commands  of  the  Bible 
are  verbal  expressions  of  natural  commands,  is  afforded  in 
the  command  to  obedience. 

In  the  Bible,  implicit  obedience  to  the  commands  of 
God,  absolute  submission  to  his  will,  is  everywhere  en- 
joined, as  the  primary  duty  of  man.  Under  the  relations 
which  exist  between  man  and  God,  obedience  is  obviously 
the  necessary  mode  of  expression,  in  conduct,  of  love  on 
the  part  of  man.  Thus  the  Christ  said  :  "  If  ye  love  me, 
keep  my  commandments."  Man  is  declared  in  the  Bible 


ISO  THE  VERBAL  REVELATION. 

to  have  fallen  by  disobedience,  and  to  have  been  redeemed 
by  him  who  "  became  obedient  unto  death." 

So,  too,  obedience  is  the  law  of  the  physical  world.  It 
would  seem  as  if,  from  his  education  and  habits  of  thought, 
the  engineer  ought  to  have  an  especially  clear  apprehen- 
sion of  what  obedience  to  the  commands  of  God  and  sub- 
mission to  his  will  really  mean,  and  a  vivid  perception  of 
the  absolute  and  necessary  sense  in  which  these  expres- 
sions are  to  be  understood.  This  subject  was  touched 
upon  at  the  commencement  of  these  papers.  We  then 
observed  the  complete  accordance  that  is  demanded  be- 
tween the  will  and  purpose  of  one  who  attempts  any 
physical  work  whatever,  and  the  fixed  and  eternal  pur- 
pose of  God.  To  the  extent  called  for  by  the  work 
proposed,  absolute  harmony  with  the  nature  of  God  must 
exist  in  the  spirit  of  man.  Attention  is  now  recalled  to 
this  fact,  as  affording  a  prominent  illustration  of  the  iden- 
tity between  the  commands  of  the  Bible  and  the  com- 
mands which  exist  in  the  nature  of  things. 

Again,  the  same  harmony  is  to  be  observed  between 
the  spiritual  and  the  physical  dependence  of  man  upon 
God,  as  the  former  is  taught  in  the  Bible,  and  the  latter 
is  observed  in  nature.  In  both  these  respects  this  depend- 
ence is  absolute  or  infinite.  The  Bible  teaches  that 
eternal  life,  which  it  defines  to  consist  in  a  unity  of  the 
nature  of  man  with  God,  is  the  free  gift  of  God,  which 
every  human  being  may  receive  as  fully  as  he  will. 

So  in  nature  we  observe  that  every  thing  is  the  free 
gift  of  God.  Our  being,  and  every  thing  by  which  that 
being  is  supported,  all  knowledge  and  the  capacity  for 
knowing,  our  affections  and  all  objects  for  their  exercise, 
every  thing,  is  a  free  gift  to  us  from  some  source.  We 
cannot  conceive  of  ourselves  as  possessed  of  any  thing, 
save  only  our  depraved  nature,  that  we  have  not  received 
from  an  infinitely  beneficent  source. 


THE  VERBAL  REVELATION.  l8l 

The  foregoing  observations  would  appear  sufficiently  to 
exhibit  the  singular  agreement  between  the  Bible  and 
truth  as  observed  in  nature.  We  trace  between  them 
this  harmony.  The  Bible  teaches  truth  in  its  spiritual 
relations.  Nature  exhibits  truth  in  its  physical  expression. 
It  will  be  the  office  of  science,  in  its  full  development,  to 
unfold  truth  universal  in  the  harmonies  of  its  physical 
and  spiritual  manifestations. 

We  now  pass  to  the  consideration  of  another  phase  of 
the  general  harmony  between  the  Bible  and  those  expres- 
sions of  truth  which  are  presented  to  us  in  nature  and  in 
the  human  conscience. 

Mankind  have  not  only  advanced  in  knowledge  since 
the  Bible  was  written,  they  have  also  made  progress  in 
humanity.  The  Israelites  represented  fully  the  best  de- 
velopment of  the  race  in  this  respect  in  their  day.  But 
they  were  originally  a  semi-barbarous  and  cruel  people. 
The  lex  talionis  was  their  unwritten  law,  precisely  as  it 
was  among  the  North  American  Indians.  Revenge  was 
their  cardinal  virtue.  The  amelioration  of  this  1-aw  of 
vengeance  was  one  object  of  their  great  lawgiver. 

It  is  startling  to  read,  in  the  earliest  writings  of  this 
people,  the  question  recorded  as  asked  by  God  himself,  of 
the  first  man  related  to  have  been  born  into  the  world  ;  a 
question  that  searches  out  the  fundamental  principles  of 
human  relations,  and  the  meaning  of  which  we  are  only 
now  beginning  to  realize.  Our  wonder  is  increased  when 
we  read  the  command,  that  at  the  very  first  was  given  to 
the  selfish  and  contentious  Israelites,  evidently  not  for 
themselves  alone,  but  through  them  to  the  human  race 
forever,  "  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself."  And 
in  order  that  no  place  should  be  left  for  doubt  as  to  the 
meaning  of  these  words  "  thy  neighbor,"  that  no  excuse 
should  be  found  for  treating  them  as  words  of  limitation, 


1 82  THE  VERBAL  REVELATION. 

the  commands  were  added :  "  Love  ye  therefore  the 
stranger."  "  The  stranger  that  dwelleth  with  you  shall  be 
as  one  born  among  you,  and  thou  shalt  love  him  as  thy- 
self ;  for  ye  were  strangers  in  the  land  of  Egypt." 

This  command,  addressed  directly  to  the  motive  to  all 
right  action,  the  general  and  comprehensive  command, 
out  of  which  all  particular  commands,  to  govern  the  con- 
duct of  men  in  all  their  relations  and  intercourse,  proceed, 
as  necessary  corollaries,  was  thus  given  to  men  long  be- 
fore they  could  feel  or  sympathize  with  its  spirit.  Many 
centuries  were  to  pass  before  the  great  expounder  and 
exemplar  of  this  command  should  arise,  to  enforce  and 
to  illustrate  it.  And  even  then,  after  so  long  a  time,  how 
little  advance  in  humanity  had  been  made  by  men,  com- 
pared with  that  which  yet  remained  to  be  accomplished. 
Even  since  the  advent  of  the  Christ,  the  leaven  has  worked 
very  slowly,  so  that  it  would  be  absurd  to  say  that,  at  this 
present  day,  the  most  Christian  nations,  as  a  whole,  have 
made  much  progress  towards  the  full  obedience  to  the 
command,  "  love  thou  the  stranger  as  thyself." 

There  remained,  however,  a  height  of  spiritual  benefi- 
cent activity  above  this,  that  was  to  be  revealed  by  the 
Christ,  in  the  further  command,  "  Love  your  enemies." 
This  is  a  natural  command.  By  a  natural  command  is 
meant  one  that  is  inherent  in  the  nature  of  things,  and 
which  spiritual  beings,  in  their  normal  state,  spontaneously 
and  necessarily  obey.  With  natural  commands  of  a  physi- 
cal nature  we  are  familiar.  These  are  commands  to  use 
our  various  senses  and  organs  for  the  purposes  for  which 
each  one  was  given  us.  We  obey  these  commands  in  see- 
ing, hearing,  walking,  and  so  on  through  the  whole  circle 
of  our  activities.  In  like  manner  the  command  to  universal 
love  is  a  command  that  the  spirit  in  its  normal  condition  was 
formed  to  obey,  precisely  as  it  was  formed  to  see.  Love 


THE  VERBAL   REVELATION.  183 

is  the  response  that  such  a  spirit  makes  to  any  antagonism, 
whatever  may  be  the  form  of  its  expression  ;  or  rather,  it 
is  the  uniform  mode  of  normal  spiritual  activity,  that  can- 
not be  affected  by  external  conditions.  Obedience  to  this 
command  to  universal  love,  the  expression  of  normal 
spiritual  activity,  was  to  be  shown  in  the  life  and  death  of 
Him  by  whom  the  command  was  given.  The  manifesta- 
tion in  the  Christ  of  that  nature  to  which  this  is  a  natural 
command  remains  an  example  to  the  human  race  forever. 

Now  every  one,  in  the  depths  of  his  consciousness, 
recognizes  the  fact  that  the  command  to  universal  love, 
given  in  the  Bible,  is  the  verbal  expression  of  natural  law. 
It  agrees  with  physical  law,  or  with  the  uniform  conduct 
of  God,  which  is  the  manifestation  of  his  love  to  all  crea- 
tures alike,  to  the  just  and  the  unjust,  to  the  evil  and  the 
good.  The  Bible  alone  presents  this  harmony.  We  per- 
ceive that  it  must  have  been  given  to  men  by  the  same 
Being,  from  whom  the  natural  command  to  universal  love 
proceeded,  and  in  whose  conduct  it  is  illustrated.  This 
law  needed  to  be  declared  to  men.  God  only  could  de- 
clare it.  Therefore  the  Book  in  which  it  is  declared  is  the 
Word  of  God. 

We  come  now  to  a  still  higher  test  respecting  the  divine 
origin  of  the  Bible.  This  book  has  been  seen  to  declare 

O 

the  true  relation  existing  between  man  and  man,  and  to 
reveal  the  motive  that  in  their  normal  spiritual  state  would 
govern  the  conduct  of  men  toward  their  fellow-men.  But 
if  the  Bible  be  from  God,  it  must  also  declare  the  relation 
between  man  and  God.  Here  we  encounter  evidence  of 
the  divine  origin  of  the  Bible  that  is  of  a  singularly  im- 
pressive character.  We  have  seen  that  the  Bible  is  in 
harmony  with  nature  in  declaring  the  existence  of  one 
unseen  God.  But  it  does  far  more  than  this.  It  declares 
the  attributes  of  God,  which  are  found,  first,  to  be  in  har- 


1 84  THE  VERBAL  REVELATION, 

mony  with  his  attributes  as  exhibited  in  nature,  although 
men  had  been  blind  to  this  exhibition  of  them  ;  and, 
secondly,  to  be  directly  opposed  to  the  universal  and 
fanatical  belief  of  the  Jews  themselves.  God  is  declared 
to  be  the  universal  Father,  infinite  in  love,  and,  therefore, 
in  the  same  degree  which  is  beyond  degree,  in  mercy  and 
forgiveness  ;  and  with  whom  every  soul,  throughout  all 
the  nations  of  the  earth,  has  the  same  intimate  relations. 
Out  of  these  relations  there  springs  one  single  natural  com- 
mand. To  this  command  the  Bible,  if  it  be  the  Word  of 
God,  must  give  expression.  That  command  which  man,  in 
his  normal  state,  would  naturally  obey,  as  the  free  and  spon- 
taneous act  of  his  rejoicing  being,  just  as  he  obeys  every 
command  that  grows  out  of  his  relation  to  the  physical 
creation,  by  putting  forth  his  activity  in  every  form  for 
which  his  organs  were  given  to  him,  that  supreme  com- 
mand must  also  have  its  expression  here. 

We  ask  for  it,  and  the  answer  comes :  "  Thou  shalt 
love  the  Lord  thy  God,  with  all  thy  heart,  and  with  all 
thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy  might."  We  bow  our  heads, 
for  we  know  that  we  are  listening  to  the  voice  of  the  God 
of  nature.  Expressing  the  relation  that  really  exists  be- 
tween man  and  his  Maker,  but  which  was  never  conceived 
of  by  him,  as  existing  between  himself  and  any  deity  of 
his  own  creation  ;  and  given  with  a  comprehensiveness 
and  an  energy  of  repetition  that  befit  its  transcendent 
consequence,  and  exceed  that  of  any  other  form  of  words 
that  ever  was  uttered  in  the  ear  of  man,  this  command, 
that  seems  to  ring  through  the  earth  and  the  heavens, 
could  have  come  only  from  Him  who  created  man  in  His 
own  image. 

But  even  another  test  remains.  What  would  the  God 
of  nature,  the  Being  of  infinite  and  universal  and  change- 

1  Deut.  vi.,  5. 


THE  VERBAL  REVELATION.  183 

less  love,  do  with  respect  to  man  in  his  abnormal  condi- 
tion ?  Would  the  God  that  gives  the  sunshine  and  the 
rain  leave  man  in  the  condition  in  which,  however  he 
reached  it,  he  is  incapable  of  recognizing  the  existence  of 
the  Being  whose  perfection  he  does  not  share,  and  so  can- 
not conceive, — that  condition  in  which  he  feels  no  impulse 
to  obey,  but  on  the  contrary  feels  every  impulse  to 
disobey,  the  command  to  universal  love, — that  condition 
in  which,  to  consider  it  merely  in  its  negative  aspect,  which 
cannot  be  disputed,  he  is  dead  to  all  the  happiness  that 
flows  from  communion  with  infinite  love  ?  Is  there  any 
way  of  rescuing  man  from  the  fearful  plight  of  a  perverted 
nature,  and  of  making  his  hateful  spirit  lovely,  which  the 
God  who  cares  for  his  physical  being  with  such  incon- 
ceivable provision  could  hesitate  to  adopt  ? 

The  crowning  evidence  that  the  Bible  is  the  Word  of 
the  God  of  nature  is  found  in  the  answer  which  it  makes 
to  this  question.  In  the  supreme  revelation  there  given 
of  the  love  of  God  to  man,  in  the  purpose  that  is  declared 
in  the  sacrifice  on  the  cross,  and  in  the  change  in  the 
nature  of  our  race,  proceeding  in  the  gradual  manner  that 
marks  all  the  operations  of  God,  which  change  we  witness 
in  its  progress,  obviously  as  the  consequence  of  that 
sacrifice,  and  in  the  accomplishment  of  that  purpose,  we 
recognize  again,  and  in  its  highest  manifestation,  the 
harmony  between  the  verbal  and  the  physical  revelations 
of  God. 

It  is  sometimes  made  a  ground  of  objection  to  the 
Bible,  that  it  contains  many  mysteries.  If  it  were  a  merely 
human  production^his  would  not  be  the  case.  In  this 
feature  we  find  another  respect  in  which  a  close  likeness 
appears  between  the  Bible  and  the  physical  creation. 
Both  have  depths  that  we  cannot  explore.  Just  here  we 
would  naturally  look  in  the  Bible,  if  we  assume  it  to  be 


1 86  THE  VERBAL  REVELATION. 

true,  to  find  a  special  likeness  to  nature.  We  observe  that 
in  nature,  however  little  may  be  revealed  to  us,  still  that 
little  is  just  what  we  need  to  know,  and  is  all  that 
we  need  to  know.  However  much  is  hidden  from  us, 
still  nothing  is  hidden,  the  knowledge  of  which  is  essen- 
tial, or  could  contribute,  to  our  present  uses  and  hap- 
piness. We  would  expect  to  find  the  same  to  be  the 
case  with  the  Bible.  This  expectation  will  not  be  dis- 
appointed. All  the  mysteries,  and  these  are  many  and 
deep,  which  are  presented  to  us  in  the  Bible,  are  for  us 
only  matters  of  curious  speculation.  All  truth  that  is 
necessary  to  be  known  and  received  by  us,  that  can  in  any 
way  affect  our  present  and  future  welfare  and  happiness, 
is  set  before  us  in  clear  and  strong  light.  This  fact  is  not 
affected  by  the  disposition  of  men  to  contend  about  the 
former,  and  to  neglect  the  latter  because  these  afford  no 
opportunity  for  contention. 

A  part  of  the  universal  analogy  between  the  mysteries 
of  the  Bible  and  those  of  nature  has  been  well  stated  by 
a  recent  writer,  as  follows :  "  Modern  experience  and  more 
thorough  thought  have  shown  how  speedily  we  strike  on 
the  transcendent,  which  we  can  neither  elude  nor  solve,  as 
soon  as  we  handle  the  simplest  problem  in  exact  science. 
It  seems  to  suggest,  as  no  previous  age  had  suggested, 
that  in  the  spiritual  and  ethical  spheres,  which  are  no  less 
'  exact '  than  the  physical  one,  there  is  the  transcendent  in 
the  Trinity,  the  Incarnation,  the  Atonement,  which  calls 
us  to  bow  to  revelation  about  them  with  a  humility  never 
before  seen  to  be  so  natural,  so  reasonable,  so  right."  ' 

Referring  again  to  the  remarkable  character  of  the 
language  of  the  Bible,  it  is  to  be  observed,  that  the  lan- 
guage which  is  most  surely  recognized  by  the  Christian  as 

'From  an  address  delivered  before  the  Alumni  Association  of  Union 
Theological  Seminary,  on  "  Modern  Safeguards  of  Orthodoxy,"  by  Mancius 
H.  Mutton,  D.D.  Pulpit  Treasury,  July,  1885. 


THE  VERBAL  REVELATION.  iS/ 

being  the  very  words  of  God,  is  that  which  expresses, 
under  so  many  forms,  the  supreme  truths,  of  the  infinite 
tenderness  of  the  love  of  God  to  all  men,  of  the  personal 
relation  that  exists  between  the  soul  of  man  and  God,  and 
of  the  possible  and  ultimate  complete  unity  of  the  human 
with  the  divine  nature.  As  it  was  observed  with  respect 
to  the  physical  descriptions  and  allusions  in  the  Bible,  that 
their  meaning  grows  with  each  increase  of  our  knowledge, 
and  each  enlargement  of  our  conceptions,  so,  in  an  emi- 
nent degree,  is  it  the  case  with  the  language  that  we  are 
now  considering.  The  comprehension  and  enjoyment  of 
this  language  by  us  depends  entirely  for  its  degree  upon 
the  development  of  universal  love  in  our  own  souls.  This 
language  has  no  interest  or  meaning  for  the  human  spirit 
in  its  abnormal  state.  It  grows  more  expressive  just  as 
the  spirit  becomes  more  responsive  to  infinite  love.  It 
is  equal  to  every  demand.  In  it  every  longing  finds  its 
satisfaction,  and  trust  its  complete  expression. 

I  cannot  avoid  repeating,  as  especially  applicable  to 
this  subject,  the  thought  with  which  the  last  paper  was 
concluded.  The  absurdity  of  any  expression  of  opinion 
respecting  the  language  of  the  Bible  by  those  who  can 
see  nothing  in  it,  and  of  opposing  any  argument  whatever 
against  the  experiential  knowledge  of  its  preciousness, 
ought  to  be  sufficiently  obvious. 

Other  features  of  the  harmony  between  the  Bible  and 
nature  will  present  themselves,  when  we  come  to  consider 
the  subjects  of  faith  and  suffering  and  prayer.  The  facts 
already  observed,  however,  sufficiently  warrant  the  con- 
clusion, that  the  Bible  is  in  harmony  with  the  revelations 
made  in  the  physical  creation,  and  that  it  supplements 
these  revelations  ;  that  to  the  soul  that  is  able  to  receive 
it,  and  just  in  the  degree  in  which  the  soul  is  able  to 
receive  it,  the  Bible  completes  and  consummates  the 
revelation  of  the  infinite  love  of  God. 


PERFECTION. 


THE  purpose  of  the  last  paper  was  to  point  out  some 
features  of  the  harmony  that  exists  between  the  Bible 
and  the  physical  revelation,  or  what  may  be  embraced  in 
the  general  expression,  "  the  nature  of  things."  An  ad- 
ditional illustration  of  this  harmony  is  afforded  in  the 
standard  of  conduct  that  is  common  to  both.  The  fitness 
of  mechanical  science  for  exhibiting  this  harmony  is  also 
illustrated  here.  A  common  standard  of  conduct  which 
transcends  human  experience,  affords  another  and  a  very 
impressive  proof,  that  the  Bible  has  proceeded  from  the 
same  Infinite  Being  who  is  manifested  in  the  nature  of 
things. 

In  mechanical  science  there  has  been  revealed  to  man 
the  actual  standard  of  excellence,  which  is  perfection. 
From  the  very  nature  of  the  case,  this  is  the  only  standard 
that  can  be  recognized  in  mechanics ;  for  if  it  be  not, 
then  where,  on  the  sliding  scale  of  imperfection,  shall  the 
standard  be  set  ?  This  standard  is,  to  be  sure,  a  purely 
theoretical  one,  unattainable  by  man  in  practice.  None 
are  so  deeply  conscious  of  this  as  they  whose  efforts 
have  enabled  them  to  approach  most  nearly  to  it.  The 
more  highly  educated  the  mechanical  sense  becomes,  the 
more  obvious  the  fact  appears,  that  perfection  is  the  only 
standard  that  can  in  reality  exist.  This  standard  admits 
of  no  compromise  with  imperfection.  Its  claims  admit  of 


PERFECTION.  1 89 

no  argument  in  their  support.  To  the  mind  that  is  capa- 
ble of  perceiving  them  they  are  self-evident. 

It  is  to  be  observed,  also,  that  this  standard  in  mechanics 
could  not  have  been  originated  by  man.  Man  has  needed 
to  be  educated  up  to  it,  by  the  slow  process  of  mechanical 
revelation.  This  bare  statement  would  doubtless  be  dis- 
puted by  some.  It  forms  an  important  link  in  my  argu- 
ment. It  is  therefore  necessary  that  its  correctness  shall 
be  established.  The  fact  is,  those  who  would  question 
this  statement  would  do  so  only  because  they  do  not  know 
what  it  means.  In  advance  of  any  mechanical  education, 
men  generally  will  say,  honestly  enough,  that  every  one 
ought  to  aim  at  perfection  in  mechanical  work.  But  they 
mean  by  this  word  something  that  is  attainable,  and  often 
easily  attainable,  and  with  which  they  would  be  completely 
satisfied.  They  do  not  mean  the  real  standard  of  excel- 
lence, but  only  their  own  imaginary  standard,  the  best 
they  can  themselves  form  an  idea  of.  It  would  be  idle  to 
talk  to  them  about  any  thing  more  exacting.  They  would 
only  reply  :  "  What  do  you  want  of  any  thing  any  better 
than  that  ?  " 

It  is  difficult  to  realize  how  gradually  the  idea  of  me- 
chanical truth  has  grown  in  the  minds  of  men,  as  the  result 
of  education.  I  saw  in  practical  use  in  the  city  of  Oporto, 
a  few  years  ago,  the  following  method  then  employed  in 
that  city  for  signalling  each  day  the  hour  of  noon.  A 
cannon  was  planted  in  an  opening  in  the  tower  of  a 
church.  The  hammer  was  held  up  by  a  string.  As 
the  rays  of  the  sun  appeared  past  an  angle  of  the  wall, 
they  were  focalized  on  the  string  by  a  lens  and  burned  it 
in  two,  when  the  hammer  fell  and  the  gun  was  fired. 
Should  this  apparatus  operate  perfectly,  it  would  give  solar 
time,  as  given  by  the  sundial.  If  it  were  a  cloudy  day, 
or  if  for  any  reason  the  cannon  failed  to  be  fired  within  a 


1 90  PERFE  C  TION. 

reasonable  time,  it  was  the  duty  of  a  priest  to  go  up  the 
church-tower  and  cut  the  string,  or  make  the  hammer  to 
strike  by  hand.  I  saw  nothing  produced  in  the  same  city 
that  appeared  to  be  more  nearly  round  than  the  wheels 
of  the  carts,  which  were  hewn  out  of  planks  with  the  axe. 

Thus  a  consideration  of  what  the  mechanically  unedu- 
cated or  partially  educated  mind  intends,  when  it  employs 
the  term  "  perfection"  in  a  mechanical  sense  establishes 
the  truth  of  our  proposition.  It  is  now  obvious  enough, 
that  in  its  real  sense  of  absolute  truth  unattainable  by 
finite  endeavor,  perfection  is  a  standard  that  has  needed 
to  be  revealed  to  man,  and  that  by  slow  degrees. 

The  educated  mechanic  stands  amazed  when  he  beholds 
everywhere  in  nature  the  actual  realization  of  this  ideal 
perfection.  This  great  subject  can  only  be  alluded  to 
here.  In  the  following  paper  it  will  be  briefly  considered, 
and  a  few  of  its  innumerable  lessons  presented. 

One  who  has  become  familiar  with  the  existence  of  this 
necessary  standard  of  mechanical  excellence  reads  with  a 
peculiar  sensation  the  blazing  command  of  the  Christ: 
"  Be  ye  therefore  perfect,  even  as  your  Father  which  is  in 
heaven  is  perfect."  Here  the  same  unattainable  standard 
is  set.  The  mere  command :  "  Be  ye  therefore  perfect," 
if  it  stopped  there,  would  have  left  every  one  to  set  his 
own  imaginary  standard,  and  to  be  satisfied  with  his  own 
attainment.  But  it  would  not  have  declared  the  true 
standard,  the  only  real  standard  of  conduct.  This  is  set 
beyond  all  doubt  or  cavil  in  the  added  words,  "  even  as 
your  Father  which  is  in  heaven  is  perfect."  We  observe 
with  gladness  that  this  was  not  a  new  command,  first 
uttered  by  the  Christ,  although  it  was  given  by  him  with, 
more  unmistakable  distinctness  and  emphasis  than  it  had 
received  before ;  but,  as  in  the  case  of  the  command  to 
love  our  .neighbor,  this  also  had  been  declared  of  old. 


PERFECTION.  IQ1 

Now  the  mind  to  whom  the  real  standard  of  mechanical 
excellence  has  been  revealed  cannot  fail  to  see,  and  to 
realize  vividly,  the  fact,  that  this  command  to  spiritual 
excellence  is  not,  and  could  not  be  from  man.  To  such  a 
mind  this  command  appears  to  be  the  expression  of  the 
universal  standard  of  absolute  truth,  in  its  application 
to  spiritual  beings ;  the  very  same  command  that  the 
mechanic  hears  in  its  physical  applications. 

An  essential  unity  pervades  all  physical  and  spiritual 
existence.  There  is  one  law  for  both.  Truth  is  a  univer- 
sal quality,  that  in  the  nature  of  things  is  demanded  in 
both  these  forms  of  being  alike.  Indeed,  truth  in  physi- 
cal expression  is  only  the  manifestation  of  truth  previ- 
ously existing  in  spiritual  being.  The  degree  of  approach 
to  the  former  is  determined  entirely  by  the  degree  of  con- 
formity to  absolute  truth  that  has  been  reached  by  the 
latter.  This  every  engineer  understands  full  well.  In  the 
declaration  of  this  standard  of  spiritual  excellence,  he 
recognizes,  therefore,  the  voice  of  the  giver  of  all  being. 
In  the  command  itself  he  recognizes  a  universal  expres- 
sion. "As  your  Father  in  heaven  is  perfect"  is  the  only 
real  standard  of  all  excellence.  This  is  illustrated  in  all 
the  works  of  creation.  It  is  revealed  to  man  as  the 
standard  by  which  all  his  physical  work  is  to  be  measured. 
And  now  in  the  only  possible  way,  through  human 
language  in  the  Word  of  God,  it  is  declared  in  its  applica- 
tion to  the  conduct  of  moral  beings. 

Thus  perfection  is  presented  to  us  everywhere,  and  in 
all  ways,  as  the  essence  of  the  divine  nature,  and  as  the 
law  of  all  worthy  activity,  the  goal  of  all  human  endeavor, 
both  in  our  relations  to  physical  and  to  spiritual  being. 
As  there  could  be  no  other  physical  standard,  so  there 
could  be  no  other  spiritual  standard.  But  neither  the 
one  nor  the  other  could  have  been  originated  by  man. 


1 92  PERFE  C  TION. 

Man  could  not  give  expression  to  a  standard  of  spiritual 
excellence,  any  more  than  he  could  express  a  standard  of 
physical  excellence,  which  is  beyond  his  power  to  con- 
ceive. Both  these  must  have  proceeded  from  the  same 
infinite  source. 


NATURAL   RELIGION. 


I  HAVE  endeavored  to  show  that  the  being  of  God  is  a 
fact  that  can  be  revealed  only  as  love,  and  can  be  recog- 
nized only  by  love  ;  that  this  highest  of  all  truths  cannot 
be  reached  by  inferior  modes  of  our  spiritual  activity, 
but  demands  for  its  apprehension  the  exercise  of  the  high- 
est of  all  the  forms  of  this  activity.  If  I  have  been  suc- 
cessful in  this  endeavor,  then  it  will  be  obvious  that  it  is  a 
misnomer  to  call  Natural  Theology  a  science.  This  so- 
called  science  claims  to  be  a  method  of  demonstrating  to 
the  understanding  the  existence  of  God,  by  evidence  drawn 
from  His  works.  In  other  words,  it  is  an  attempt  to  do 
that  which  in  the  nature  of  things  cannot  be  done.  This 
"  science  "  is  in  fact  only  a  human  contrivance,  designed 
on  wrong  or  imaginary  principles,  and  therefore  one  which 
must  be  mischievous  in  its  operation. 

If  we  will  imagine  the  children  of  a  watch-maker  study- 
ing a  watch,  in  order  to  find  evidence  of  the  existence  of 
their  father,  who  has  been  before  their  eyes  and  treating 
them  with  unspeakable  tenderness  all  their  lives,  we  will 
have  the  case  exactly.  If  we  will  conceive  that,  while  all 
this  has  been  true  respecting  the  father,  still  the  children, 
under  the  influence  of  some  strange  spell,  remain  in  igno- 
rance of  his  being ;  that  while,  in  helpless  dependence  upon 
him,  they  are  carried  in  his  bosom,  and  are  the  objects  of 
his  love  and  care  in  an  inconceivable  degree,  still  all  the 


194  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

knowledge  they  can  get  respecting  him  is  that  he  made 
that  watch,  and  a  great  many  other  mechanical  contriv- 
ances, we  will  have  the  sum  of  what  can  be  found  out 
about  God  by  the  intellectual  method  of  natural  theology, 
or  by  following  the  poet's  advice,  and  endeavoring  to 
"  look  through  nature  up  to  nature's  God." 

This  so-called  science  was  a  natural  product  of  the  mind 
at  a  certain  stage  of  its  growth.  There  has  been  a  long 
period,  now  happily  past,  during  which  all  the  relations 
of  the  soul  of  man  to  God  have  been  regarded  as  being 
primarily  the  subjects  of  the  human  understanding.  Our 
emotional  nature,  our  real  spiritual  being,  has  in  former 
days  been  treated  by  theologians  with  but  little  more  re- 
gard than  it  has  been  by  men  of  science.  The  highest 
form  of  our  mental  or  spiritual  activity  has  been  neglected, 
and  its  great  office,  as  the  direct  and  exclusive  medium 
for  the  revelation  to  us  of  the  highest  truth,  has  been 
ignored.  The  clear  light  of  infinite  truth  has  moreover 
been  obscured  and  distorted  by  transmission  through 
human  media.  The  words  of  men  have  been  substituted 
in  place  of  the  revelation  of  God  to  an  almost  incredible 
extent.  Prominence,  in  some  cases  almost  exclusive,  has 
been  given  to  every  form  of  doctrine  that  could  be  made 
to  harmonize  most  nearly  with  the  narrow  and  selfish  and 
vindictive  natures  of  men,  and  that  could  hide  most  effect- 
ually the  infinite  and  universal  and  changeless  love  of 
God,  as  this  love  is  revealed  in  the  Bible  and  in  nature. 

The  imagined  omnipotent  faculty  of  the  reason  has 
been  exalted  as  the  infallible  guide  to  truth.  Theologians 
have  been  trained  to  rely  on  severe  processes  of  thought, 
and  the  fact  that  these  processes  led  different  minds  to 
contradictory  conclusions  was  powerless  to  show  them  the 
absurdity  of  this  reliance.  The  religious  mind  was  fitted 
into  various  systems  of  human  contriving,  and  was  fed  on 


NATURAL  RELIGION.  195 

formulas  and  propositions  and  demonstrations  and  de- 
ductions, the  confidence  of  men  in  which  only  showed  the 
narrowness  of  their  conceptions.  Every  thing  else  was 
made  subordinate  to  those  questions  on  which  men  dif- 
fered, and  about  which,  therefore,  they  could  contend. 

All  this  naturally  culminated  in  the  supposition  that  the 
being  and  nature  of  God  Hirnself  come  so  far  within  the 
grasp  of  our  comprehension,  as  properly  to  be  made  the 
subjects  of  human  reasoning.  On  these  points  of  doctrine 
warring  views  were  held,  and  men  gratified  their  ferocious 
propensities  by  killing  each  other  for  holding  them.  What 
rivers  of  blood  have  been  caused  to  flow,  because  men, 
while  agreeing  in  the  fundamental  error  of  holding  God 
to  be  the  subject  of  human  comprehension,  have  differed 
in  their  conclusions  respecting  Him  ! 

Minds  that  were  educated  in  such  schools  of  thought 
could  of  course  have  no  perception  of  the  absurdity  of 
the  system  of  natural  theology.  Its  deductions  were  of  a 
nature  essentially  similar  to  those  to  which  they  were 
accustomed.  These  deductions  were  reached  by  meth- 
ods of  the  same  exclusively  intellectual  character,  as  the 
processes  of  thought  in  the  use  of  which  they  had  been 
educated.  Both  arrived  at  the  conception  of  a  purely 
imaginary  divinity.  The  living  God,  the  God  of  the  Bible 
and  of  nature,  who  can  be  fully  revealed  only  to  the  spirit 
that  loves  its  neighbor  as  itself,  was  equally  hidden  from 
those  who  sought  him  through  either  of  these  intellectual 
methods. 

By  a  process  quite  insensible,  and  aided  by  influences 
which,  like  force,  are  discernible  only  in  their  effects,  the 
mind  of  the  more  advanced  portions  of  our  race  has  for  a 
long  time  been  outgrowing  this  infantile  stage.  The  true 
nature  of  religion  is  coming  to  be  better  perceived.  Har- 
mony of  the  natures  of  individual  men  with  the  nature  of 


196  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

God,  in  love,  is  seen,  more  and  more  distinctly,  to  consti- 
tute its  sole  essence. 

The  merely  intellectual  nature,  with  its  beliefs  about 
what  is  utterly  beyond  its  comprehension,  is  being 
dethroned  from  its  usurped  supremacy ;  and  the  emo- 
tional nature,  and  the  conduct  as  determined  by  the 
affections,  are  coming  to  be  accorded  their  rightful  place. 

The  real  progress  of  civilization  and  Christianization, 
which  in  their  essence  are  one  and  the  same  thing,  is  seen 
in  the  greater  relative  importance  that  men  attach  to 
those  deeper  verities  about  which  it  is  not  possible  for 
them  to  contend. 

Under  these  changing  conditions  of  religious  life,  it  is 
not  at  all  a  matter  of  surprise  that  the  methods  and  the 
deductions  of  natural  theology  should,  at  the  present  day, 
receive  far  less  attention  than  they  once  commanded. 
Their  unsatisfactory  nature  is,  in  fact,  very  generally  felt, 
even  by  those  to  whom  this  science  has  been  carefully, 
taught.  This  is  a  cheering  indication.  It  is,  indeed,  quite 
time  that  natural  theology,  which  seeks  in  nature  for  evi- 
dences of  the  being  of  God  whom  the  soul  has  not 
"  spiritually  discerned,"  should  give  place  to  natural  re- 
ligion, which  in  every  thing  in  nature  recognizes  with 
adoration  the  active  manifestation  of  that  love  which  has 
been  revealed  through  its  likeness  to  the  image  formed  in 
the  spirit ;  which  sees  exhibited  all  about  it,  in  an  infinite 
degree,  the  universal  love  that  it  feels.  It  is  time  that  the 
works  of  God  should  be  studied  again  in  the  spirit  of  the 
Psalms.  The  disposition  of  religious  thought,  that  even 
yet  prevails  under  the  benumbing  influence  of  our  scienti- 
fic education,  to  regard  with  little  concern  the  mighty 
religious  influences  by  which  we  are  in  fact  enveloped,  is 
matter  for  profound  astonishment. 

When  God  has  been  revealed  within  the  spirit,  in  the 


NATURAL  RELIGION.  197 

only  possible  way,  by  the  recognition  of  love,  and  is  then 
seen  to  fill  the  universe  with  his  presence ;  when  the  glad 
soul,  in  its  freedom,  finds  itself  a  participant  in  the  har- 
mony of  the  creation,  in  which  nothing  exists  for  itself, 
but  all  things  are  in  ceaseless  activity  for  beneficent  pur- 
poses ;  then,  indeed,  the  study  of  the  love  of  God  in  its 
physical  manifestations,  so  far  as  our  limited  powers  en- 
able us  to  pursue  it,  becomes,  next  after  the  contempla- 
tion of  the  same  love  as  shown  in  the  work  of  human 
redemption,  the  most  satisfactory  of  mental  occupations. 

In  this  study  we  are  not  seeking  after  evidences  of  the 
being  of  God.  Far  from  it.  The  spirit  has  already  found 
rest  and  peace  in  the  certain  recognition  of  this  supreme 
truth.  No  question  respecting  the  being  of  God  can 
disturb  it,  or  can  even  enter  its  consciousness.  But  the 
spirit  delights  to  come  more  consciously  into  the  presence 
of  God,  to  see  his  glory  revealed  to  it,  so  far  as  it  can 
endure  the  sight,  and,  while  lost  in  wonder  at  the 
wisdom  and  the  skill  that  his  works  display,  to  adore  the 
love  which  it  beholds  animating  and  directing  the  whole. 
In  this  study  we  admire,  also,  the  evidence  that  God  has 
created  us  in  His  own  image.  He  has  given  to  us  the  in- 
telligence by  which  we  are,  in  some  degree,  however  small, 
able  to  understand  the  divine  methods  of  operation,  and 
ourselves,  though  at  so  great  a  distance,  to  employ  similar 
methods,  and  to  exercise  similar  skill.  This  is  a  fact 
which  affords  corroborative  evidence  of  the  strongest 
character  in  support  of  the  truth,  of  the  perception  of  all 
spiritual  realities  by  recognition.  To  this  evidence  atten- 
tion will  shortly  be  invited. 

Although,  in  any  proper  view  of  the  works  of  God,  the 
wisdom  and  skill  which  these  works  display  are  obscured 
by  the  brighter  light  of  the  Divine  love,  or,  to  drop  the 
figure,  although  the  former  can  have  little  of  real  interest 


198  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

for  us,  except  in  the  degree  in  which  the  latter  is  revealed, 
and  then  the  beneficent  purpose  manifest  in  every  thing 
must  occupy  the  supreme  place  in  the  thought,  still  it  will 
conduce  to  clearness  of  apprehension,  if  we  separate  these 
in  our  mind  for  a  little  time,  and  observe  the  former  alone, 
so  far  as  possible  without  regard  to  the  omnipresent 
motive. 

We  have  been  so  constituted  that,  when  once  the  Infi- 
nite Mind  has  been  recognized,  we  perceive  intuitively 
that  the  creation  must  have  emanated  from  that  mind, 
and  must  be  the  manifestation  or  expression  of  it.  The 
philosophy  of  this  perception  is  very  simple.  We  reason 
from  ourselves.  We  observe  our  own  process  of  mechani- 
cal construction.  In  a  subordinate  sense,  man  is  himself 
a  creator.  His  creation  has  a  uniform  order,  from  which 
no  variation  is  conceivable.  That  order  is  this  :  First,  he 
forms  in  his  mind  the  idea.  This  mental  conception  is  for 
him  a  real  spiritual  entity,  which  he  beholds  in  his  "  mind's 
eye  "  as  distinctly  as  though  it  were  sensible  to  his  touch. 
Afterwards  he  produces  its  material  counterpart,  which 
cannot  vary  from  the  original  in  his  thought,  "  even  by 
the  estimation  of  a  hair."  The  thought  grows  or  changes 
in  his  mind.  Corresponding  development  or  change  is 
demanded  in  the  visible  duplicate  or  representation  of  it. 
When  completed,  his  work  stands  before  him  merely  as 
his  embodied  thought.  Whatever  the  nature  of  his  crea- 
tion may  be,  and  whether  it  be  simple  or  complicated  in 
any  degree,  in  all  cases  alike  the  form,  the  adaptation  to 
its  use,  the  function  of  every  part,  the  relations  of  the 
several  parts  to  each  other, — all  these  together,  constitute 
the  material  realization  of  his  idea,  the  expression  of  his 
purpose,  the  visible  representation  of  his  thoughts,  of  his 
whole  spiritual  nature,  so  far  as  the  work  affords  oppor- 
tunity for  such  representation  to  be  made.  Thus  in  our 


NATURAL   RELIGION'.  199 

own  creative  work  we  find  all  possibility  of  material  ex- 
istence to  be  determined  and  limited  by  the  preexistent 
thought  and  purpose  in  our  minds. 

Although  this  uniform  order  of  creation  finds  its  most 
obvious  illustration  in  the  endlessly  varied  applications  of 
mechanical  science  made  by  man  to  his  own  use,  still  its 
illustrations  extend  far  beyond  mechanical  construction. 
They  are  to  be  observed  in  every  thing.  The  voice  cannot 
even  produce  a  tone,  until  this  tone  has  been  formed  in  the 
mind,  and  has  been  heard  by  the  mental  ear  ;  and  just  as  this 
mental  tone  is  true  or  untrue,  firm  or  uncertain,  so  precisely 
will  its  audible  counterpart  be.  From  this  uniform  experi- 
ence, analogy  compelsthe  universal  conclusion:  First  in  the 
order  of  being  must  be  a  mind.  In  this  mind  the  thought 
must  be  formed.  Afterwards  only  can  sensible  existence 
come  to  be,  as  the  embodiment  of  such  thought. 

These  applications  of  mechanical  science,  which  man  has 
been  so  marvellously  endowed  with  the  ability  to  make, 
constitute  one  of  the  distinguishing  glories  of  civilization. 
Since  every  thing  in  nature  has  more  than  a  single  use, 
and  often  multiplied  uses  for  the  same  thing  are  known  to 
us,  it  is  a  reasonable  supposition  that  mechanical  science 
has  also  its  uses,  beyond  and  above  all  its  material  ap- 
plications. A  leading  object  of  these  papers  has  been  to 
trace  some  of  these  spiritual  uses.  We  now  find  ourselves 
face  to  face  with  another  and  an  important  one.  Mechanical 
science  exhibits  the  whole  philosophy  of  the  perception  of 
spiritual  realities  by  recognition.  It  shows  how  it  is  pos- 
sible for  us  to  have  any  realities,  which  are  not  of  a  nature 
to  be  revealed  to  us  through  our  physical  organs  merely, 
placed  before  our  very  eyes  continually,  obvious  to  those 
who  can  recognize  them  by  their  resemblance  to  images 
already  formed  in  their  consciousness,  but  absolutely 
hidden  from  those  who  can  form  no  such  recognition,  and 


200  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

also  beyond  the  power  of  words  to  convey  the  knowledge 
of  them,  except  so  far  as  the  words  can  revive  in  con- 
sciousness images  that  had  been  previously  formed. 

In  a  moving  machine  the  uninstructed  mind  sees  parts 
in  motion  merely,  and  this  is  all  that  it  can  see.  The 
mechanically  instructed  mind,  on  the  contrary,  in  a  degree 
precisely  proportionate  to  the  depth  of  its  own  insight, 
sees  that  which  produces  and  determines  every  motion, 
and  the  object  and  effect  of  every  motion,  and  the  forces, 
static  and  dynamic,  that  are  exerted,  or  that  are  developed, 
in  every  part  of  the  machine,  to  produce  or  resist  motion. 
This  perception  varies  with  each  individual,  and  no  finite 
mind  ever  possessed  that  complete  insight  which  would  en- 
able it  to  recognize  every  force  that  is  exerted  in  even  the 
most  simple  moving  machine. 

Thus  we  find  it  to  be  the  case  respecting  force,  in  these 
various  modes  of  its  manifestation,  that  if  images  corre- 
sponding sufficiently  to  these  modes  of  manifestation  have 
not  already  been  formed  in  our  consciousness,  then  we 
cannot  recognize  these  manifestations  of  force,  we  are 
dead  to  their  existence.  But  if  these  are  already  familiar 
objects  to  us,  then  we  look  within  the  material  forms, 
and  recognize  their  presence. 

So,  if  we  were  not  ourselves  capable  of  mechanical  con- 
struction, we  could  not  recognize  mechanical  construction 
in  the  works  of  God.  If  we  possessed  no  mechanical  skill 
ourselves,  mechanical  skill  in  the  universe  would  be  shown 
to  us  in  vain.  All  things  would  possess  no  more  signifi- 
cance for  us  than,  except  to  a  very  few  scholars,  the 
cuneiform  inscriptions  do.  We  would  see  only  shapes 
that  had  no  meaning.  These  shapes  become  informed 
for  us  with  thoughts,  only  because  we  ourselves  can  inform 
material  shapes  with  thoughts. 

It  is  also  to  be  observed  that  if  the  likeness  of  any  spir- 


NATURAL  RELIGION.  2OI 

itual  reality  that  is  shown  to  us  exists  already  in  our 
consciousness,  we  must  recognize  it.  If  our  own  con- 
sciousness furnishes  an  analogous  reality,  then  the  mani- 
festation of  the  constructive  thought,  purpose,  and  skill 
cannot  be  presented  to  us  without  their  instant  recognition. 
We  at  once  look  within  the  material  form,  and  behold  the 
spiritual  reality. 

Thus  mechanical  science  gives  us  the  key  to  all  spiritual 
perception.  Beyond  mere  material  forms,  we  see  without 
only  that  which  we  recognize,  because  the  same  thing 
already  exists  within  ourselves.  If  we  are  ourselves 
skilled  workmen,  and  nothing  else,  then  we  can  see  in  the 
physical  universe  only  the  skilled  workman.  If  we  are 
chemists  and  nothing  more,  creation  is  for  us  the  uni- 
versal laboratory  of  the  infinite  chemist.  If  we  are  merely 
mathematicians,  we  can  form  no  conception  associated 
with  any  thing  that  we  see  except  a  mathematical  concep- 
tion. So  far  as  they  go,  these  conceptions  would  all  be 
correct.  The  fault  with  them  is  that  they  are  only  partial 
and  subordinate  conceptions.  But  every  moral  being  is 
capable  of  something  more  than  being  a  skilled  workman, 
or  a  chemist,  or  a  mathematician.  He  is  capable,  also,  of 
the  feeling  of  love  in  endless  degree  of  development,  and 
of  perceiving  the  fact,  that  this  feeling  of  love  is  the  sole 
foundation  of  all  worthy  character  and  conduct.  Just  in 
the  degree  that  this  feeling  exists,  the  universe  is  seen  to 
be  animated  by  love.  This  is  God,  and  thus  only  through 
the  necessary  recognition  of  love  can  God  be  revealed  to 
man. 

A  little  incident,  that  became  invested  with  both  a 
sweet  and  a  mournful  interest,  will  perhaps  help  us  to  see 
more  clearly  the  line  between  the  revelation  of  God  and 
the  deductions  of  natural  theology.  In  the  summer  of 
1882,  travelling  one  evening  on  the  steamboat  Bristol,  I 


2O2  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

spent  a  few  minutes  in  looking  through  the  window  in  the 
saloon  at  the  engine.  While  thus  occupied,  I  heard  an 
exclamation  of  delight  near  me,  and  turning  I  saw  a  girl  of 
seventeen  or  eighteen  years,  attended  by  a  gentleman,  and 
gazing  with  rapture  on  the  ponderous  machinery.  I  was 
instantly  arrested  by  her  appearance,  and  thought  I  had 
never  seen  so  spiritual  an  expression.  Her  face  was 
luminous,  and  riveted  my  sight.  After  watching  the 
movements  of  the  great  engine  in  silence  for  some  time, 
she  slowly  exclaimed,  as  if  to  herself,  unconscious  of  any 
other  presence,  "  only  to  think  of  the  mind — that  could 
plan  all  that ! "  The  next  morning  I  read  in  a  Boston 
journal  the  telegraphic  announcement  of  the  death  of 
Erastus  W.  Smith,  the  designer  of  the  engines  of  the 
Bristol,  and  so  the  last  one  of  the  long  line  of  discoverers 
and  inventors  and  designers,  whose  minds  had  successively 
helped  to  "plan  all  that." 

Here  the  intelligence  of  this  remarkable  young  person 
had  penetrated  to,  and  her  whole  thought  was  absorbed 
by,  the  only  spirituality  that  the  case  could  present  to  her, 
and  that  was,  the  mind  that  could  plan  what  was  to  her  so 
wonderful.  A  mechanical  expert  would,  of  course,  see 
much  more  than  this.  In  a  degree  corresponding  with 
the  degree  of  his  own  skill  and  experience,  he  would  see 
the  functions  of  the  various  parts  of  the  mechanism,  and 
the  adaptation  of  each  part  to  its  purpose.  He  would  per- 
ceive the  expansive  energy  of  the  steam,  and  the  opera- 
tions that  must  go  on  out  of  sight,  in  order  that  visible 
action  should  take  place.  Each  of  these  things,  and 
many  others,  would  be  recognized  by  the  expert,  just  so 
far  as  corresponding  images  had  previously  been  formed 
in  his  mind,  and  no  further. 

All  this  was,  of  course,  entirely  beyond  the  girl's  per- 
ception. She  had  never  had  formed  in  her  consciousness 


NATURAL  RELIGION.  203 

images  that  would  enable  her  to  recognize  any  of  these 
features.  She  had  only  a  vague  and  wondering  idea  of 
the  intelligence  that  would  enable  a  mind  to  "  plan  all 
that."  About  this  mind  two  things  are  to  be  noted : 
First,  the  conclusion  is  not  warranted  that  it  could  do  any 
thing  else  except  this.  Probably  it  could  not  do  any  other 
thing  so  well.  Secondly,  the  perception  of  this  mind  does 
not  suggest  the  idea  of  any  personal  relation  whatever 
between  itself  and  the  admirer  of  its  work.  No  thought 
or  feeling  arises  of  love  or  faith  or  worship.  The  suggest- 
ion of  such  sentiments  is  seen  to  be  utterly  incongruous. 

This  illustrates  the  failure  of  natural  theology,  and  re- 
veals its  cause.  This  miscalled  science  employs  a  wrong 
method,  or  rather  it  is  a  wrong  method.  It  is  as  if  a  man 
should  begin  at  the  top  to  build  a  house.  The  method  of 
natural  theology  is  utterly  powerless  to  create  in  the  spirit 
the  activity  of  universal  love.  It  can  therefore  give  to  us 
no  perception  of  God,  the  Being  animated  by  infinite 
love,  and  with  whom  we  have  the  closest  personal  rela- 
tions. The  Bible  teaches  us  that  the  activity  of  universal 
love,  that  form  of  our  spiritual  activity  by  which  we  are 
able  to  recognize  God,  is  a  divine  gift.  Natural  theology, 
on  the  contrary,  assumes  that  without  the  employment  of 
this  gift,  the  knowledge  of  God  can  be  attained  by  a  pro- 
cess of  reasoning.  It  is  a  human  method,  in  opposition 
to  the  divine  method. 

I  have  insensibly  been  led  back  to  the  further  discussion 
of  natural  theology ;  but  will  now  endeavor  to  adhere  to 
the  especial  line  of  observation  that  I  have  proposed,  and 
to  present  in  a  brief  form  a  few  illustrations  of  the  wisdom 
and  skill  that  fill  the  universe. 

When  God  has  been  revealed  in  the  spirit,  then  it  is 
true  that  all  education  is  a  help,  and  a  very  great  help, 
to  the  recognition  of  his  presence.  There  are  two  obser- 


2O4  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

vations  of  a  general  nature  which  are  calculated  to  make 
an  especially  deep  impression  on  the  mind  of  the  engineer, 
on  account  of  the  education  that  he  has  received.  The 
first  of  these  observations  is — creation  without  a  mistake  ! 
This  overwhelming  fact  cannot  arrest  the  attention  of 
others  in  the  same  degree.  Indeed  the  mass  of  mankind 
are  inclined  rather  to  pass  it  idly  by,  as  a  thing  of  course. 
But  the  engineer  becomes  acquainted  with  the  slow  and 
painful  growth  of  mechanical  thoughts  in  finite  minds. 
He  is  familiar  with  the  constant  mistakes  that  mark  the 
progress  of  every  mechanical  invention  from  its  rude  in- 
ception to  its  successful  use.  He  knows,  moreover,  that 
perfection  is  never  reached  by  man ;  that  the  detection  of 
defects  in  any  human  work  is  only  a  question  of  depth  of 
insight.  He  is  aware  that,  while  any  single  mind  always 
finds  its  resources  exhausted,  and  for  that  reason  can 
often  see  nothing  wanting  in  its  work,  still  improvements 
perpetually  suggest  themselves  to  fresh  explorers.  Words 
cannot  convey  an  idea  of  the  indescribable  sensation  of  awe 
with  which  such  a  mind  contemplates  the  perfection  that 
it  sees  exhibited  throughout  the  mechanism  of  the  creation. 
The  second  of  these  observations  is  this  :  In  human 
mechanical  constructions  simplicity  is  found  to  be  a  prime 
necessity.  This  feature  is  the  constant  aim  of  every  suc- 
cessful designer.  Moreover,  when  the  parts  of  any  ma- 
chine are  numerous,  the  disposition  of  them,  so  that  they 
may  operate  without  interfering  with  each  other,  is 
always  a  serious  problem,  and  often  it  is  one  involving 
grave  difficulties.  Now,  when  a  mind  familiar  with  this 
experience  contemplates  what  appears  to  it  as  the  appall- 
ing complications  which  are  involved  in  all  the  structural 
works  of  the  Creator,  complications  which,  commencing 
with  the  disposition  and  movements  of  the  heavenly 
bodies,  extend  throughout  all  being,  and  seem  greatest 


NATURAL  RELIGION.  205 

of  all  in  the  structure  of  the  most  minute  organisms,  and 
when  he  beholds  everywhere  perfect  harmony  of  structure 
and  of  operation,  he  cannot  fail  again  to  be  impressed  by 
the  sight  in  a  degree  that  is  not  possible  in  another  mind 
not  possessed  of  the  same  practical  knowledge.  He  sees 
that  in  the  works  of  God  it  is  not  necessary  to  sacrifice 
any  thing  to  simplicity.  While  in  each  individual  organi- 
zation the  number  and  the  variety  of  functions  to  be  per- 
formed seem  endless,  the  most  direct  means  for  performing 
each  one  are  always  provided,  nothing  is  wanting  that  is 
required  for  any  use,  and  nothing  is  found  to  exist  except 
for  a  use,  and,  however  massed  together,  every  member  of 
each  separate  system  performs  its  functions  without  inter- 
ference from  any  others. 

Although  observations  on  this  subject  that  are  possible 
here  must  be  very  superficial,  since  a  lifetime  may  be 
devoted  to  the  study  of  a  single  organism,  and  even  to  a 
single  member  or  feature  of  an  organism,  still,  even  upon 
such  a  general  view,  we  cannot  fail  everywhere  to  behold 
infinite  intelligence  in  its  omnipresent  activity. 

A  few  illustrations  will  be  given,  drawn  from  the  circu- 
lations in  nature.  The  first  two  of  these  have  been  se- 
lected because  they  present  familiar  examples  of  what,  to 
my  own  mind,  has  been  especially  impressive,  namely,  the 
adaptation  which  is  everywhere  to  be  observed  of  a  single 
agency  to  a  variety  of  uses,  and  also  the  harmonious 
cooperation  of  various  distinct  agencies  for  the  accom- 
plishment of  a  single  end.  The  third  illustration  is  chosen 
on  account  of  its  mechanical  interest. 

The  first  of  these  illustrations  will  be  found  in 

THE   CIRCULATION   OF   WATER. 

Water  presents  the  only  form  or  combination  of  matter 
in  the  fluid  state  that  can  support  either  vegetable  or 


206  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

animal  life.  The  structure  of  every  organism  is  adapted 
to  receive  it,  and  every  one  is  dependent  upon  it.  Every 
animal  and  every  vegetable  must  drink  or  perish.  The 
presence  and  purity  of  this  universal  necessity  are  secured 
by  a  continuous  circulation,  in  which  water,  rising  in  an 
invisible  state  from  the  whole  surface  of  the  earth,  is 
borne  in  the  air,  either  in  this  state  or  in  the  form  of 
clouds,  until,  under  certain  as  yet  unknown  conditions,  it 
is  returned  to  the  earth  in  rain  or  snow. 

For  the  existence  of  water  we  are  indebted  to  the 
pressure  of  the  atmosphere.  Indeed,  if  the  atmosphere 
exerted  no  pressure  there  could  be  no  organic  being. 
Organic  being  is  dependent  upon  water,  and  water  exists 
in  a  fluid  state  only  under  pressure.  Under  the  pressure 
of  the  atmosphere,  and  at  ordinary  temperatures,  water 
passes  gradually  into  the  gaseous  state.  As  the  vapor 
that  is  formed  by  this  evaporation  becomes  cooled  in  the 
upper  regions  of  the  atmosphere,  a  portion  of  it  is  con- 
densed and  forms  clouds.  Here  phenomena  appear  which 
science  has  not  yet  attempted  to  explain. 

By  this  condensation  minute  drops  of  water  are  formed. 
There  is  no  intermediate  state  of  this  substance  between 
water  and  the  invisible  elastic  gas  known  as  vapor  or 
steam.  Clouds  differ  from  lakes  only  in  the  minute  sub- 
division, and  separation  of  the  particles,  of  the  water  that 
composes  both  alike.  At  the  ordinary  mean  elevation  of 
clouds  each  one  of  the  drops  of  water  of  which  they  con- 
sist is  about  one  thousand  times  heavier  than  the  air  that 
it  displaces,  and  yet  it  does  not  fall,  not  even  when  frozen, 
which  is  very  often  the  case.  By  some  means,  also,  the 
particles  of  water  in  a  cloud  are  kept  at  a  uniform  dis- 
tance from  each  other.  When,  under  some  unknown 
change  of  conditions,  these  become  united  in  larger  drops, 
the  water  descends  to  the  earth  to  perform  its  innumerable 
functions. 


NATURAL  RELIGION.  2QJ 

Concerning  the  nature  of  the  forces,  which  operate  to 
determine  the  size  of  the  minute  particles  of  water  that 
are  formed  by  the  condensation  of  a  portion  of  the  uni- 
formly diffused  vapor,  which  keep  those  particles  at  a  dis- 
tance frora  each  other,  and  which  prevent  them  from  fall- 
ing directly  to  the  earth — the  forces  to  the  action  of  which 
we  are  indebted  for  the  formation  of  clouds, — we  are  as 
yet  ignorant.  We  are  in  equal  ignorance,  also,  of  the 
forces  which  determine  the  varied  forms  and  dispositions 
of  the  clouds  themselves.  No  plausible  theory  even,  of  a 
definite  nature,  has  been  advanced  respecting  the  causes 
of  any  of  these  phenomena.1 

Rising  from  the  earth  purified  and  invisible,  revealing 
itself  in  the  heavens  in  forms  of  beauty,  and  thence  de- 
scending to  renew  all  life,  water  presents  to  us  a  perpetual 
symbol. 

A  general  survey  of  some  of  the  functions  that  water 
performs  and  has  performed  will  show  the  important 
part  that  was  allotted  to  this  familiar  fluid  in  the  scheme 
of  the  world.  By  its  means  the  earth  has  been  made  hab- 
itable. Infinite  pains  have  been  taken  to  transform  the 
original  chaos  of  jagged  igneous  rocks,  broken  and  heaped 
by  contraction  and  protrusion,  into  the  beautiful  world  on 
which  we  dwell ;  and  water  has  been  the  medium,  or  the 
essential  agent,  employed  in  doing  the  whole  work.  The 
extent  of  this  work,  and  the  time  during  which  it  has 
been  in  progress,  are  shown  in  the  facts,  that,  with  the 
exception  of  occasional  ejected  masses,  there  remains  no 
original  igneous  rock  on  the  surface  of  the  earth,  and  the 
strata  of  formations  that  have  been  effected  through  the 
agency  of  water  reach  to  the  known  depth  of  twenty 
miles.  Water  has  carried  in  suspension,  or  has  contained 

1  Recent  experiments  on  the  condensation  of  metallic  vapors  strengthen 
the  presumption  that  these  causes  may  be  of  an  electrical  nature. 


208  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

in  solution,  has  separated  and  pulverized  by  its  motion, 
and  has  compacted  by  its  pressure,  this  entire  mass  of  the 
crust  of  the  earth.  It  has  been  essential  also  to  every 
combining  and  cementing  and  crystallizing  process.  More- 
over, the  alluvium  in  all  its  forms,  gravel,  clay,  loam,  and 
sand,  desert  and  fertile  ground  alike,  is  the  effect  of  the 
action  of  water. 

Water  dissolves  out  of  the  soil  all  mineral  substances 
that  are  required  in  the  growth  of  plants.  In  this  state  of 
solution  these  substances  are  absorbed  by  the  roots  of 
plants,  and  are  conducted  upward  to  their  leaves,  there  to 
enter  into  the  combination  with  carbon,  by  which  the 
earth  becomes  clothed  with  the  varied  forms  of  vegetable 
life.  This  union  of  mineral  substances  in  solution  with 
carbon  forms  the  basis  of  all  organic  being,  of  which  being 
in  all  its  forms,  both  vegetable  and  animal,  water  consti- 
tutes also  by  far  the  larger  part. 

As  water  is  the  medium  employed  by  the  Infinite  Intel- 
ligence by  which  nearly  all  chemical  and  physical  changes 
on  the  earth  have  been  and  are  now  being  made,  so  also 
we  find  it  to  be  the  medium  given  to  man,  to  be  employed 
by  him,  in  both  its  fluid  and  its  gaseous  states,  for  the 
conversion  of  heat  into  every  form  of  useful  energy. 

The  ministry  of  water  never  ceases.  Its  change  of  state 
is  only  change  of  use.  When  mingled  with  the  atmos- 
phere as  an  invisible  vapor  it  has  a  new  service  allotted  to 
it.  Now  it  wraps  the  earth  with  a  protecting  mantle,  to 
prevent  the  too  rapid  loss,  by  radiation  into  space,  of  the 
heat  received  from  the  sun.  The  value  of  this  service  is 
shown  by  the  condition  of  lofty  mountains,  where  the 
action  of  the  aqueous  vapor  in  preventing  this  loss  of 
heat  becomes  less  efficient.  The  mountain-tops  are 
covered  with  eternal  snow,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  the 
heat  received  by  them  from  the  sun  is  far  greater  than  the 


NATURAL  RELIGION,  2(X) 

amount  that  is  able  to  penetrate  the  invisible  envelope 
and  reach  to  the  level  of  the  sea.  This  action  of  water 
affords  a  striking  example  of  the  general  truth,  of  which 
fresh  illustrations  reward  investigation  in  every  depart- 
ment of  physics,  that  Infinite  Wisdom  has  anticipated 
and  provided  for  every  requirement. 
Our  second  illustration  is  afforded  by 

THE   CIRCULATION   OF   CARBON. 

After  water,  carbon  forms  one  of  the  principal  constitu- 
ents of  both  vegetable  and  animal  organisms.  Its  circula- 
tion, which  involves  the  ceaseless  destruction  and  renewal 
of  physical  life,  is  crowded  with  activities,  of  which  only 
the  more  general  features  come  within  the  range  of  our 
observation. 

Carbon  is  not  soluble  in  any  known  substance.  It 
exists  separately  only  in  the  solid  state.  From  this  it 
passes  directly,  without  intermediate  fluidity,  into  the 
gaseous  state,  by  combining  with  oxygen,  from  which  it 
has  not  yet  been  dissociated  so  as  to  be  obtained  as  a 
separate  gas.  Carbonic-acid  gas,  the  familiar  compound 
thus  formed,  is  diffused  in  a  minute  proportion  throughout 
the  atmosphere,  forming  one  twenty-fifth  of  one  per  cent, 
of  its  volume,  and  from  this  source  the  vegetable  king- 
dom, and  thence  the  animal  kingdom  also,  derives  its 
entire  supply  of  carbon. 

We  witness  here  a  phenomenon  of  a  wonderful  charac- 
ter, but  which  is  only  a  type  of  a  class  of  phenomena  that 
are  to  be  observed  universally.  This  is  the  cooperative 
action  of  separate  and  remote  agencies,  for  the  accom- 
plishment of  a  single  end  or  purpose.  In  the  leaves  of 
plants,  as  already  stated,  the  two  constituents  of  their 
being  meet.  These  are  mineral  substances,  brought  by 
water  from  the  soil,  and  carbon,  borne  in  the  air.  Other 


210  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

remarkable  features  are  also  to  be  noted.  If  carbon  were 
soluble  in  water,  or  if  mineral  substances  were  not  so,  in 
either  case,  the  vegetable  and  animal  creations,  as  these 
are  constituted,  could  not  exist.  It  4s  only  in  the  leaves 
of  plants  that  sunlight  exerts  any  influence  to  dissociate 
carbon  from  its  union  with  oxygen. 

In  some  of  its  vegetable  combinations,  carbon  is 
adapted  to  the  nutritive  organs  of  animals,  and  being 
received  by  them  in  these  combinations,  it  becomes,  next 
after  water  and  its  elements,  the  chief  constituent  of  the 
organic  portions  of  their  bodies. 

From  both  these  associations  or  uses,  vegetable  and 
animal,  carbon  returns  directly  to  its  combination  with 
oxygen.  All  combustion,  and  all  decay,  of  either  vege- 
table or  animal  tissues,  is  this  recombination,  in  rapid  or 
in  gradual  progress,  which  is  also  the  chief  terrestrial 
source  of  heat.  In  animals,  this  return  of  carbon  to  its 
chemical  union  with  oxygen  goes  on  continually  through- 
out the  organism,  and  is  the  source  of  animal  heat.  The 
carbonic-acid  gas,  which  is  formed  in  this  manner,  is 
brought  by  the  blood  from  every  part  of  the  body  to  the 
lungs,  and  is  discharged  into  the  atmosphere  at  each  expi- 
ration, while  the  blood  returns  charged  continually  with 
fresh  oxygen,  by  which  the  process  is  continued. 

A  remarkable  provision  is  here  to  be  noted,  by  which 
this  recombination  of  carbon  with  the  oxygen  of  the 
atmosphere  is  rendered  possible.  Oxygen  has  an  almost 
universal  affinity  for  other  substances,  except  nitrogen, 
the  gas  with  which  it  is  mingled  in  the  atmosphere.  By 
reason  of  this  general  and  strong  greediness  of  oxygen 
for  combination  with  other  forms  of  matter,  it  has  resulted, 
that  this  gas  forms  the  larger  component  of  nearly  all 
compound  substances,  both  in  their  solid  and  fluid,  as  well 
as  their  gaseous  states.  Oxygen  combines  with  hydrogen 


NATURAL  RELIGION.  211 

to  form  water,  and  it  combines  with  various  bases  to  form 
all  the  rocks  and  clays  of  the  globe.  All  these  combina- 
tions are  of  a  permanent  character.  In  the  first  one  the 
two  gases  assume  the  liquid  state  under  the  ordinary  con- 
ditions of  heat  and  pressure.  In  all  the  combinations  of 
the  second  class,  oxygen  becomes  a  solid.  In  contrast 
with  all  others  of  its  almost  universal  combinations, 
stands  the  case  of  the  union  of  oxygen  with  carbon. 
Here  oxygen  retains  its  gaseous  form,  and  the  solid  car- 
bon becomes  a  gas.  This  exceptional  action  brings 
carbon  into  the  state  in  which  it  is  adapted  to  re-com- 
mence its  endless  circuit,  in  the  development  of  plant-life. 
Sufficient  evidence  is  afforded  here  of  a  special  purpose, 
in  establishing  the  peculiar  nature  of  the  combination  of 
oxygen  with  carbon.  This  is,  however,  only  a  prominent 
illustration  of  an  innumerable  number  of  cases,  in  which 
special  provision  is  obviously  made  for  special  uses. 
Indeed,  the  cases  in  which  the  special  purpose  is  evident 
to  us  are  so  numerous,  that  we  are  warranted  in  the 
important  conclusion,  that  a  special  purpose  determines 
every  combination  or  association  of  matter. 

But  we  have  been  led  away  from  what  is  perhaps  the 
most  remarkable  feature  of  the  case.  Not  only  does  oxy- 
gen retain  its  gaseous  form,  and  the  solid  carbon  become  a 
gas  in  this  combination,  but  in  order  that  this  shall  take 
place  at  all,  there  must  be  precisely  what  is  found  to  exist, 
namely,  that  complete  want  of  affinity  of  oxygen  for  nitro- 
gen which  has  just  been  mentioned.  There  is  no  chemical 
bond  or  attraction  between  these  constituents  of  the  at- 
mosphere that  would  need  to  be  broken,  before  the  union 
of  oxygen  with  carbon  could  take  place.  Oxygen  has  no 
attraction  whatever  for  nitrogen,  but  these  exist  together 
in  a  merely  mechanical  mixture.  Nitrogen  acts,  however, 
as  a  diluent  of  the  oxygen,  and  prevents  its  too  rapid 


212  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

union  with  carbon.  It  thus  renders  a  most  important 
service.  The  affinity  of  oxygen  for  carbon  is  so  strong, 
that,  were  the  oxygen  undiluted  by  nitrogen,  their  union 
would  be  destructive  of  life  in  all  its  forms. 

These  examples  illustrate  the  dependence  of  all  physi- 
cal being,  and  of  the  various  effects  which  are  obviously  in- 
tended in  nature,  upon  the  presence  of  matter,  in  precisely 
the  states  and  forms  and  proportions  that  are  observed, 
and  also  upon  the  possession  by  each  separate  form  of 
matter  of  the  precise  qualities  that  it  is  seen  to  have.  The 
sincere  mind  cannot  contemplate  without  emotion  the  per- 
fect adaptation  to  its  office  of  each  one  of  the  inumerable 
agencies,  on  whose  harmonious  activity  all  physical  being 
depends. 

Our  third  illustration  will  be  drawn  from 

THE   CIRCULATION   OF   THE   BLOOD    IN   ANIMALS. 

This  has  a  peculiar  interest,  because  it  shows  a  remark- 
able provision  for  avoiding  mechanical  difficulties. 

There  are  two  features  of  the  circulation  of  the  blood, 
which,  until  recently,  have  escaped  the  attention  of 
physiologists.  If,  in  the  provision  for  animal  existence, 
these  had  also  escaped  the  attention  of  the  Creator,  the 
animal  creation  would  have  been  a  failure,  the  mechanism 
would  not  have  worked. 

Since  the  discovery  of  the  circulation  of  the  blood,  it  has 
until  within  a  few  years  been  supposed  or  assumed  that 
the  flow  of  the  blood,  through  the  channels  provided  for  it, 
was  produced  entirely  by  the  action  of  the  heart.  It  was 
obvious  that  this  powerful  muscle  acts  as  a  pump,  first  by 
its  expansion,  admitting  the  blood  into  its  cavities,  and 
then,  by  its  contraction,  impelling  it  through  the  arteries, 
capillaries,  and  veins.  With  this  evident  action  investi- 
gators were  for  a  long  time  satisfied,  and  inquired  no 


NATURAL  RELIGION.  213 

further.  This  action,  however,  considered  as  the  only 
action  that  takes  place,  involves  two  difficulties  which  did 
not  suggest  themselves,  until  they  were  made  apparent  by 
the  analogies  that  are  afforded  in  mechanical  experience. 

The  first  of  these  difficulties  is  found  in  the  hydrostatic 
column.  In  any  system  of  pipes  filled  with  water,  either 
at  rest  or  in  motion,  the  pressure  of  water  at  the  base  is . 
greater  than  it  is  at  a  line  six  feet  above  the  base,  by  two 
and  five  eighths  pounds  on  each  square  inch  of  area.  Blood 
being  about  six  per  cent,  heavier  than  water,  if  its  circula- 
tion were  produced  by  the  action  of  the  heart  alone,  a 
difference,  amounting,  on  the  average  of  individuals,  to 
about  two  pounds  on  the  square  inch,  would  exist  between 
the  pressures  of  blood  in  the  head  and  in  the  feet,  when 
the  body  is  in  the  erect  position,  and  this  difference  would 
disappear  on  lying  down.  Now  we  know  that,  in  fact,  no 
such  difference  exist.  Under  normal  or  healthy  condi- 
tions the  pressure  of  the  blood  is  uniform  throughout  our 
bodies,  and  is  unaffected  by  change  of  position.  In  some 
way  this  difficulty  has  been  completely  avoided. 

The  second  difficulty  is  of  a  nature,  if  possible,  still 
more  serious.  It  consists  in  the  disposition  of  fluids  in 
motion  to  take  the  shortest  road.  This  is  a  very  obstinate 
disposition.  In  the  experience  of  men  with  their  own  con- 
structions, it  has  been  found  invariably,  that,  when  alter- 
native passages  between  two  points  are  provided  for  a 
fluid,  a  very  little  difference  in  the  length  or  the  direct- 
ness of  these  passages  is  sufficient  to  cause  the  fluid  to 
choose  the  shorter  or  more  direct  route,  passing  entirely 
through  this  channel,  and  standing  quite  motionless  in 
the  other. 

Now  in  this  respect  the  different  routes  that  are  traversed 
by  the  blood  present  extreme  contrasts.  Through  some 
of  the  arteries  and  veins  the  communication,  from  the 


214  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

side  of  the  heart  from  which  the  blood  is  discharged 
around  to  the  opposite  side,  at  which  it  re-enters  it,  is 
short  and  comparatively  direct,  while  through  others  it  is 
many  times  longer  and  more  tortuous.  But  the  hy- 
draulic engineer  beholds  with  wonder  the  fact,  that  the 
current  of  the  blood  flows  through  all  these  alike.  The 
action  of  the  blood,  in  conveying  nutriment  to  the  most 
remote  parts  of  the  body,  and  in  bringing  away  the  effete 
matter  from  them,  is  precisely  as  efficient  as  it  is  in  those 
parts  that  lie  nearest  to  the  heart.  By  some  means  this 
difficulty  also  has  been  surmounted.  How  have  these 
two  results,  which  are  impossible  with  man,  been  effected  ? 
Among  recent  discoveries  in  animal  physiology  is  the 
following  important  one,  which  affords  the  principal  an- 
swer to  this  question.  The  powerful  contractile  action  of 
the  heart  has  been  discovered  to  be  the  commencement  of 
a  muscular  contractile  wave,  that  passes  from  the  heart 
along  every  artery.  What  we  feel  in  the  pulse  was  long 
supposed  to  be  the  swelling  of  the  artery  under  the  pres- 
sure of  the  current  driven  along  by  the  contraction  of  the 
heart.  This  supposition  involved  another  difficulty,  to 
which  no  attention  was  paid.  The  supposed  swelling  of 
the  artery  would  involve  a  resistance  to  the  passage  of 
the  blood,  and  there  would  be  a  consequent  loss  of  pres- 
sure at  every  point,  by  the  amount  expended  in  overcom- 
ing this  resistance.  Now  it  is  known  that  the  pulse  is  not 
such  a  swelling  of  the  artery,  but  is  the  passage  of  this 
muscular  contractile  wave.  Each  one  of  these  waves 
sends  before  it,  in  each  artery,  a  volume  of  blood  precisely 
proportioned  to  its  capacity,  and  independent  of  the  dis- 
tance or  direction  of  the  flow,  and  maintains  a  uniform 
pressure  to  every  extremity  of  the  body.  That  wonderful 
action  affords  the  only  conceivable  solution  of  this  com- 
plicated mechanical  problem. 


NATURAL  RELIGION.  21 5 

The  next  remarkable  feature  is,  that  the  various  arteries 
and  their  branches  are  nicely  proportioned  in  area  and 
strength  to  the  extent  of  the  regions  which  are  to  be  sup- 
plied with  blood  through  them.  By  this  careful  adapta- 
tion, under  the  uniform  wave  pressure,  every  part  of  the 
body  receives  its  equal  nutriment,  and  we  have  symmetry 
of  form.  A  muscular  action,  similar  to  the  wave  action  in 
the  arteries,  is  to  be  observed,  impelling  each  swallow  of 
water  upwards  along  the  neck  of  the  horse  and  some 
other  animals  while  drinking. 

This  glance  at  a  few  features,  taken  almost  at  random, 
and  which  are  no  more  remarkable  than  is  every  thing  else 
in  nature,  of  which  many  examples  will  suggest  themselves 
to  the  intelligent  reader,  will  be  concluded  with  a  brief 
reference  to  a  few  of  the  relations  or  adaptations  of  widely 
different  things  to  each  other,  which  are  everywhere  found. 
These  adaptations  are  so  familiar,  that  they  fail  to  impress 
us.  We  are  liable  to  become  as  insensible  to  them  as  the 
ruler  of  the  synagogue  was  to  the  present  divinity,  whose 
presence  there,  indeed,  was  not,  in  reality,  any  more  mani- 
fest than  it  is  always  and  everywhere,  but  which  was  so 
involuntarily  confessed  by  him  when  he  said  :  "  There  are 
six  days  in  which  men  ought  to  work ;  in  them,  therefore, 
come  and  be  healed. 

These  adaptations  are  such,  as  that  of  the  sun,  at  such 
a  vast  distance,  to  varied  forms  of  matter  on  the  earth,  so 
as  by  its  heat  and  light  to  quicken  them  into  those  activi- 
ties, out  of  which  both  vegetable  and  animal  life  are 
developed,  and  by  which  these  are  supported ;  as  the 
structure  of  the  lungs  of  animals,  with  reference  to  the 
vital  interchange,  by  the  blood,  of  carbonic-acid  gas  for 
oxygen,  which  is  perpetually  being  effected  within  them  ; 
as  the  adaptation  of  the  eye  to  light,  and  of  both  the  eye 
and  light,  on  the  one  hand,  to  the  objects  that  are  to  be 


2l6  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

revealed  by  their  joint  agency,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  to 
the  spirit  to  whom  the  revelation  of  these  objects  is  to  be 
made  ;  as  the  adaptation  of  the  wings  of  birds  to  the  air, 
and  to  the  weight  of  the  body  that  in  each  case  is  to  be 
supported  in  it,  and  to  their  further  office  of  impelling  this 
body  through  it ;  and  so  universally  the  adaptation  of  each 
member  of  every  organism,  not  only  to  its  function,  but 
also  to  those  natural  agencies  which  cooperate  with  it  in 
the  performance  of  that  function.  This  list  might  be 
extended  indefinitely.  These  examples  are  sufficient  to 
indicate  an  instructive  line  of  observation  and  thought. 

An  impressive  instance  of  the  adaptation  of  physical  to 
spiritual  being,  as  well  as  of  the  performance  of  different 
functions  by  a  single  agency,  is  seen  in  the  case  of  the  at- 
mosphere. Besides  being  the  supporter  of  combustion 
and  of  animal  and  vegetable  life,  and  performing  a  variety 
of  familiar  functions,  by  its  pressure  and  otherwise,  the 
atmosphere  is  the  medium  for  the  conduction  of  sound, 
or,  speaking  correctly,  for  comunicating  the  vibrations  of 
other  bodies  to  the  ears  of  animals. 

All  matter  is  capable  of  being  put  into  a  state  of  vibra- 
tion. The  variety  of  these  vibrations  is  infinite.  Each 
one  is  communicated  to  the  omnipresent  air,  which  is  in 
close  contact  with  all  bodies,  under  pressure.  The  atmos- 
phere repeats  and  transmits  all  these  vibrations  by  corre- 
sponding pulsations.  It,  moreover,  repeats  and  transmits 
simultaneously  all  different  vibrations  that  may  be  com- 
municated to  it,  however  numerous  these  may  be,  without 
any  one  being  modified  or  affected  in  any  manner  by  the 
others.  The  ears  of  animals  are  adapted  to  receive  and 
repeat,  in  their  turn,  the  vibrations  which  are  communi- 
cated to  them  by  the  atmosphere.  Thus  in  some  un- 
known way  the  mind  forms  the  notion  of  sound.  Sound 
is  wholly  a  mental  conception.  The  vibrations  of  matter 


NATURAL  RELIGION. 

are  silent.  The  waves  of  the  air  also  are  as  noiseless  as 
the  unbroken  waves  of  the  ocean.  We  have  no  idea  how 
the  sensation  of  sound  is  produced.  Anatomy  traces  the 
most  delicate  and  curious  structure.  But  all  observation 
of  which  we  seem  to  be  capable  ends  where  it  begins,  on 
the  silent  vibrations  of  matter. 

Through  the  medium  of  the  atmosphere  our  spirits  com- 
municate with  one  another.  For  this  purpose  we  employ 
the  gift  of  speech.  This  also  is  produced  by  organs  which 
have  been  designed  with  express  reference  to  the  atmos- 
phere. Like  every  other  organ  of  our  frames,  the  organs 
of  speech,  to  our  limited  understanding,  appear  compli- 
cated, and  in  much  of  their  extent  obscure.  We  find  in 
them,  as  everywhere  else,  every  thing  adapted  in  fact, 
however  little  we  may  be  able  to  understand  it,  to  the 
accomplishment  of  the  perfect  result ;  which  in  this  case 
is  unlimited  capability  of  expression. 

Here,  indeed,  where  the  material  and  the  spiritual  con- 
nect, is  something  passing  wonder.  There  is  not  a  senti- 
ment or  feeling  or  emotion  of  the  soul,  existing  in  any  de- 
gree whatever,  that  the  voice  is  not  adapted  to  express. 
And,  what  is  more  than  this,  the  voice  does  spontaneously 
express  it.  And  as  the  ear  receives  the  pulsations  thus 
communicated  to  the  air,  the  listening  spirit  recognizes  the 
sentiment  or  feeling  or  emotion.  Thus,  all  human  sympa- 
thies are  interchanged,  soul  communicating  with  soul, 
through  the  amazing  mechanisms  of  the  vocal  organs  and 
the  ear,  and  the  pulsations  of  the  silent  air. 

In  reviewing  these  wonders  of  creative  skill,  we  have 
followed  the  conventional  fashion,  and  have  described 
them  as  if  we  were  viewing  a  machine.  But  the  spirit 
that  has  received  the  revelation  of  the  ever-living  God 
chafes  under  this  impersonality.  Through  all  nature  it 


2l8  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

sees  his  presence  and  his  activity.  It  knows  the  motive 
of  this  infinite  pains.  It  sees  the  love  of  God,  shining  in 
every  ray  of  light,  falling  in  every  drop  of  rain,  smiling  in 
every  flower,  ripening  every  grain,  imparting  life  in  every 
breath.  Love  is  the  unity  that  runs  throughout  and  con- 
nects the  endless  diversity.  This  love  is  manifested  in  all 
practical  ways,  in  all  common  things.  From  its  very  nature, 
it  must  be  in  a  state  of  ceaseless  beneficent  activity,  in  ways 
adapted  to  every  want  of  every  creature,  especially  to  every 
want  of  man,  from  the  very  lowest  up  to  the  very  highest. 

It  is  a  remarkable  fact,  that  similar  conduct,  or  practi- 
cal manifestation  of  love,  constitutes  the  test  that  was 
given  by  the  Christ,  to  determine  the  existence  of  love  in 
the  human  spirit  :  "  I  was  hungry  and  ye  gave  me  meat, 
I  was  thirsty  and  ye  gave  me  drink."  We  at  once  recog- 
nize this  conduct,  in  the  case  of  man,  as  affording  the  real 
evidence  of  the  existence  of  love.  We  see  it  to  be  its 
necessary  expression. 

Here,  also,  is  found  the  real  solution  of  the  painful 
problems  of  sociology.  All  human  devices  resting  on  any 
other  foundation  must  come  to  naught.  The  divine  pro- 
vision is  the  simple  and  radical  one, — universal  love,  as 
the  animating  spring  of  human,  as  it  is  of  the  divine,  conduct. 

The  varied  agencies  for  the  promotion  of  human  wel- 
fare, which  have  more  or  less  recently  commenced  their 
beneficent  work,  and  which  are  now  from  time  time  com- 
ing into  being,  can  be  useful  only  in  the  degree  in  which 
they  really  are  agencies,  not  of  man,  but  of  God,  repre- 
senting in  this  supreme  respect  their  Infinite  Principal. 

Of  the  divine  love,  as  revealed  in  nature,  we  can,  at  the 
best,  at  present  form  in  our  minds  only  faint  and  distorted 
conceptions.  The  same  love  must  become  developed  in 
ourselves  in  an  unspeakably  increased  degree,  before  these 
conceptions  can  become  clear  and  true. 


NATURAL  RELIGION.  2  1C) 

The  view  of  the  manifestation  of  God  in  nature  which 
is  attempted  in  these  papers  will  doubtless  be  regarded  by 
many  as  a  very  strange  view.  What  is  called  education 
has  perpetuated  the  influence  of  ruder  ages.  The  the- 
ological mind  is  still  filled  with  frightful  images  of  the 
justice  of  God,  and  is  taught  to  look  in  nature  for  little 
else  except  illustrations  of  the  text,  so  little  understood : 
"  The  soul  that  sinneth  it  shall  die."  One  of  the  favorite 
theological  axioms  still  is :  "  There  is  no  mercy  in  nature." 
To  look  iA  nature  for  the  complete  manifestation  of  God  is 
to  such  minds  as  foolish  as  Christianity  was  to  the  Greeks; 
and  yet  there  the  complete  manifestation  of  God  must  be. 
Christians  have  not  been  taught  to  hear,  and  so  they  do 
not  hear,  throughout  nature  the  yearning  cries  :  "  Come 
unto  me,"  "  Why  will  ye  die,"  "  What  more  could  I  have 
done  to  my  vineyard  ?  "  and  yet  nature  is  vocal  with  this 
appeal.  The  formal,  lifeless  conceptions  of  a  moral  gov- 
ernor, a  judge,  and  a  system  of  rewards  and  punishments, 
harden  the  hearts  of  men,  so  that  they  cannot  feel 
throughout  all  nature  the  throbbing  of  the  love  of  God, 
manifested  in  infinite  care,  and  symbolizing  in  all  beauty 
and  glory  its  infinite  tenderness.  The  theological  logician 
has  little  taste  for  this  "  sentiment,"  the  practical  character 
of  which  we  are  now  observing,  and  which  if  mankind 
could  participate  in,  they  would  need,  even  as  those  beings 
who  do  participate  in  it  do  need,  no  other  revelation ; 
that  sentiment,  harmony  of  the  soul  with  which  is  life, 
antagonism  to  which  is  death. 

For  one  who  is  fond  of  observing  the  practical  ways  in 
which  the  universal  love  of  God  finds  its  expression,  the 
material  provision  that  has  been  made  for  man's  activity 
and  development  presents  an  attractive  field.  Our  whole 
being  consists  of  wants.  The  progress  of  civilization  is 
indicated  by  the  increase  in  the  number,  and  by  the  eleva- 


22O  NATURAL   RELIGION. 

tion  in  the  character,  of  our  wants.  For  the  supply  of 
those  of  a  physical  nature  we  are  wholly  dependent  on  the 
earth.  But  we  scarcely  think  of  this  dependence.  The 
earth  abounds  with  resources,  adapted  to  every  want  as  it 
arises.  These  we  appropriate  to  our  service,  generally 
without  a  thought  either  of  the  dependence  or  the  provi- 
sion. A  brief  reference  to  a  single  one  of  these  provisions 
may  aid  us  to  a  partial  realization  of  their  varied  and 
boundless  nature. 

If  an  individual,  in  ignorance  of  any  reality,  should  en- 
deavor to  imagine  what  a  Being  of  infinite  knowledge  and 
beneficence  would  be  most  likely  to  provide  for  man,  in  a 
single  form  of  matter,  everywhere  distributed,  which  would 
be  of  the  utmost  general  use  to  him,  which  he  could  put 
into  shapes  suitable  for  any  purpose,  which  in  weight  and 
strength  would  meet  the  greatest  variety  of  his  require- 
ments, which  would  be  capable  of  combining  with  other 
forms  of  matter,  and  in  these  combinations  would  possess 
a  variety  of  useful  properties  additional  to  its  own,  which, 
as  his  civilization  advanced,  he  would  find  suited  to  a 
greater  and  greater  number  of  his  wants,  and,  as  his  knowl- 
edge increased,  he  would  be  able  to  apply  to  a  greater  and 
greater  variety  of  purposes,  and  which,  in  all  its  forms,  and 
in  the  characters  that  it  assumes  by  combining  with  other 
substances,  would  be  especially  adapted  to  aid  him  in 
applying  the  agencies  of  nature  to  his  use,  and  so  in  pro- 
moting his  own  civilization,  the  strongest  imagination 
could  never  have  conceived  of  the  reality  that  we  possess 
in  IRON.  No  finite  mind  can  comprehend  the  innumera- 
ble uses  of  iron,  from  the  cultivation  of  the  soil  to  the 
transmission  of  thought,  nor  measure  its  importance  to 
the  human  race.  But  iron  is  only  one  of  the  multitude  of 
provisions  for  our  welfare,  with  which  we  are  already 
familiar.  Probably  there  is  no  form  of  matter  without 


NATURAL  RELIGION.  221 

its  use,  or  more  likely  its  multitude  of  uses,  very  many  of 
which  we  have  yet  to  learn.  In  the  animal  frame  every 
part  has  its  use.  We  have  reason  to  believe  that  the 
same  must  be  the  case  with  every  form  of  matter  in  the 
earth  also,  and  that  too  in  a  higher  sense,  namely,  in 
adaptation  to  the  voluntary  employment  of  it  by  man. 

In  earlier  papers  the  physical  creation  has  been  pre- 
sented as  our  educator  in  two  respects.  Attention  has 
been  directed  to  the  ministries  of  force  and  of  truth. 
Our  complete  dependence  on  the  physical  creation  for  our 
mental,  as  well  as  for  our  physical,  sustenance  and  growth 
has  been  briefly  referred  to.  We  have  admired  the  adap- 
tation of  all  things  by  which  we  are  surrounded  to  the  de- 
velopment of  our  spiritual  as  well  as  our  physical  powers, 
by  use  and  exercise.  We  have  seen,  moreover,  how  truth 
in  the  physical  creation  is  adapted  to  promote  the  growth 
of  truth  in  the  human  spirit.  The  latter  we  recognize  to 
be  a  higher  office  than  the  former.  The  elevation  of 
human  character  is  an  object  of  unspeakably  greater  con- 
sequence than  the  increase  of  human  knowledge.  The 
normal  effect  upon  mankind  of  all  physical  influences 
should  be  the  advance  of  character  and  knowledge  hand 
in  hand. 

Now,  we  have  presented  to  us  another  adaptation,  har- 
monious with  these,  but  of  a  higher  nature  still.  To  bring 
the  human  spirit  in  its  emotional  nature,  in  its  essential 
being,  into  harmony  with  the  nature  of  God,  is  an  object 
to  which  all  other  objects  must  be  subordinate.  These 
must  be  accounted  worthy  or  unworthy,  just  as  they  tend 
to  promote  or  to  hinder  this  supreme  result.  All  educa- 
tion has  its  noblest  use  and  reason  in  the  fact,  that  it  fits 
the  soul  of  man  more  intelligently  and  more  profoundly 
to  worship  God.  This  supreme  end,  of  transforming  the 
spiritual  nature  of  man  into  likeness  to  God,  is  the  end 


222  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

that  the  physical  creation  is  above  all  adapted,  and  so 
evidently  is  intended,  to  promote.  It  performs  this  work, 
first,  by  the  constant  exhibition  of  truth,  which  has 
already  been  dwelt  upon,  and  secondly,  and  chiefly,  by  set- 
ting before  mankind,  perpetually,  the  stupendous  mani- 
festation of  the  infinite,  the  universal,  and  the  unchange- 
able love  of  God. 

We  have  observed  that  everywhere  in  nature  there  is  to 
be  seen  the  cooperation  of  many  independent  agencies, 
working  together  in  harmony,  for  the  accomplishment  of 
every  particular  purpose.  In  the  same  manner  we  have 
these  infinitely  varied  manifestations  of  the  divine  love  in 
nature,  evidently  intended  to  cooperate  in  perfect  har- 
mony with  the  supreme  manifestation  of  this  love  that  is 
revealed  in  the  Bible,  for  the  accomplishment  of  the  same 
great  purpose.  It  is  of  the  utmost  consequence  that  this 
harmony  should  be  recognized.  Then  the  sacrifice  of  the 
cross  must  be  looked  upon  as  the  necessary  expression  of 
the  same  love  that  is  shown  in  nature.  It  is  seen  to  be 
precisely  what  we  ought  to  look  for. 

The  adaptation  of  the  physical  creation  to  its  inferior 
educational  uses  is  something  that  we  recognize  at  once, 
and  turn  it  to  full  practical  account.  For  this  purpose 
we  give  all  diligence  to  the  study  of  nature.  We  derive 
all  possible  intellectual  advantage  from  the  wonders  of  the 
creation  by  which  we  are  environed.  But  the  highest  of 
its  uses,  and  the  one  which  it  was  obviously  intended 
above  all  others  to  serve,  we  are  slow  to  perceive.  We 
are  not  eager  to  study  the  love  of  God  in  nature,  and  to 
open  our  souls  to  its  transforming  influence.  This  supreme 
spiritual  revelation  we  are  blind  to  naturally,  and  this 
blindness  has  been  deepened  by  our  system  of  education. 

Physical  science,  as  at  present  limited,  is  chiefly  respon- 
sible for  the  false  education  that  now  generally  prevails. 


I  u  a  A  v  ; 

V  /V,  DV 

NATURAL  RELIGION.  _-,     223 

This  science  exercises  a  controlling  influence  on  the  forma- 
tion of  our  very  habits  of  thought,  and  it  supplies,  to  a 
great  extent,  the  formulas  of  speech  that  men  are  accus- 
tomed to  employ.  Its  influence  in  this  respect  is  mis- 
chievous. It  disregards  and  ignores  the  principal  thing. 
It  forms  its  conclusions  on  a  partial  view  of  the  facts.  It 
admits  into  consciousness  only  that  knowledge  to  which 
the  mind  reaches  in  the  inferior  modes  of  its  activity.  To 
these  things  it  insists  upon  confining  the  attention,  as  to 
the  only  things  that  can  be  known.  The  highest  of  all 
truths,  that  which  at  once  unifies  and  vivifies  the  whole, 
the  truth  that  is  of  so  much  greater  consequence  than 
those  to  which  science  limits  its  thought,  that  it  were  in- 
finitely better  that  all  those  should  perish  out  of  human 
knowledge  than  that  this  one  should  be  lost,  to  this  truth 
science  is  dead. 

It  ignores,  as  a  source  of  knowledge,  the  highest  form 
of  our  spiritual  activity,  through  which  alone  the  revela- 
tion of  the  highest  truth  can  be  received.  It  dismisses,  as 
undeserving  of  philosophic  regard,  the  activity  of  love, 
the  spring  of  all  worthy  conduct  in  man,  and  by  the 
recognition  of  which  only  can  infinite  love  be  revealed, 
which  is  the  spring  of  all  the  conduct  of  God.  And  it  ex- 
alts "  the  reason,"  a  fiction  of  its  own  brain,  and  makes 
the  supposed  conclusions  of  "the  understanding"  the 
limits  of  its  belief. 

This  unspeakable  foolishness  is  easily  exposed.  The 
philosopher  says  to  one  whom  he  looks  down  upon  as  an 
ignorant  man,  and  who  does  not  believe  in  his  instruction: 
"  My  friend,  what  do  you  know  about  the  matter?  What 
right  have  you  to  express,  or  even  to  form,  any  opinion  at 
all  on  the  subject  ?  "  Ah !  it  is  clear  enough  that  the 
ignorant  unbeliever  has  not  had  all  the  facts  revealed  to 
him  ;  moreover,  in  his  unprepared  condition,  he  cannot  re- 


224  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

ceive  the  revelation  of  them  ;  they  are  shown  to  him  in 
vain.  Yet  he  is  presuming  to  exercise  the  judicial  func- 
tions of  his  mind  on  the  basis  of  what  there  is  in  his  con- 
sciousness. Of  course,  he  is  judging  of  matters  quite 
beyond  him,  on  insufficient  and  erroneous  and  imaginary 
data.  The  unbeliever  is  himself,  however,  quite  uncon- 
scious of  all  this.  He  cannot  see,  and  so  he  will  not 
believe,  that  outside  of  his  little  horizon  there  can  exist 
any  thing  which,  if  he  knew  it,  would  change  all  his  con- 
clusions. He  insists  upon  the  authority  of  what  he  has 
been  taught  to  call  his  reason. 

The  philosopher  abandons  the  attempt  to  enlighten 
him  ;  sighs  as  he  reflects  upon  the  process  through  which 
the  uneducated  mind  must  pass  before  it  can  stand  on  his 
more  elevated  plane  of  thought ;  then  turns  away,  and 
proceeds  to  do  the  very  same  thing.  While  taking  no 
account  of  the  two  controlling  facts,  namely,  the  being  of 
God  and  the  endowment  of  man  with  a  mode  of  spiritual 
activity,  by  the  recognition  of  which  he  comes  to  a  certain 
knowledge  of  that  being,  the  philosopher  assumes  that  he 
embraces  within  his  consciousness  every  thing  required  as 
a  basis  for  a  final  judgment,  and  he  appeals  to  his  reason 
as  the  final  arbiter.  In  the  view  of  Infinite  Intelligence, 
very  little  difference  will  appear  between  the  knowledge 
of  the  two  individuals,  or  their  right  to  rely  on  their  own 
judicial  findings. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  British  Association  for  the  Ad- 
vancement of  Science,  held  at  Newcastle-on-Tyne,  some 
twenty  years  ago,  I  remember  listening  to  an  account, 
given  by  Mr.  Glaisher,  of  a  balloon  ascension  that  he  had 
made  for  scientific  observations,  with  Mr.  Coxwell,  a 
noted  aeronaut,  from  a  point  near  London.  This  impres- 
sive description  fixed  itself  in  my  memory.  Mr.  Glaisher 
said  that  as  they  rose  higher  and  higher,  irregularities  on 


NATURAL  RELIGION.  22$ 

the  surface  of  the  earth  gradually  disappeared  ;  well-known 
elevations  became  more  and  more  indistinct  ;  until  at  last 
none  of  these  could  be  recognized,  but  the  whole  land- 
scape appeared  to  be  on  one  level,  and  that  the  level  of  the 
Thames.  What  a  little  way  above  the  earth  do  we  need 
to  get,  for  its  distinctions  to  disappear  ! 

Science  has  had  a  surprising  degree  of  success  in  ren- 
dering mankind  insensible  to  the  spiritual  influences  of 
the  creation.  Through  the  direction  that  it  takes  of  our 
education,  it  is  able  actually  to  control  our  very  modes  of 
thought.  It  has  taken  care  that  no  ideas  beyond  those  of 
force  and  law  shall  enter  the  mind  in  its  forming  stage. 
This  influence  of  science  on  the  theological  mind  gen- 
erally has  far  outweighed  the  effect  of  the  contrary  teach- 
ing of  the  Bible. 

On  the  other  hand,  false  theology  has  also  had  its  in- 
fluence on  scientific  thought.  The  conception  of  God, 
that  removes  him  to  a  distance  from  his  creation,  and  that 
adds  a  wrathful  disposition  to  the  Platonic  conception  of 
a  remote  passive  Deity,  was  the  conception  that  physical 
science,  at  its  birth,  found  prevalent,  though  held  with 
various  degrees  of  definiteness,  in  the  Christian  world.  Un- 
der the  combined  influence  of  these  erroneous  theological 
and  scientific  conceptions,  it  remains  the  case  to  this  day, 
that  pulpit  instruction  rarely  rises  above  the  impersonal 
idea,  so  fearfully  false,  of  a  regular  constitution  and  order 
of  nature,  with  which  the  Almighty  only  occasionally  in- 
terferes. This  false  conception  we  see  continually  carried 
to  the  length  of  imagining  a  contrast  between  the  God  of 
nature  and  the  God  of  grace ;  a  contrast  that  certainly 
exists  between  the  true  God  and  the  imaginary  being  at 
which  we  arrive  through  an  intellectual  process.  To  the 
infinite  presence,  within  all  the  modes  and  forms  of  His 
manifestation,  of  the  God  to  whom  it  makes  its  supplica- 


226  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

tions,  the  pulpit  is,  to  a  large  degree,  practically  dead. 
We  are  spiritually  bound  in  fetters  forged  by  men,  and 
may  sigh  for  the  freedom  of  the  poet's 

"  poor  Indian,  whose  untutored  mind 
Sees  God  in  clouds,  and  hears  him  in  the  wind." 

It  is  believed  that  the  lines  of  thought  which  have  here 
been  faintly  traced,  and  that  for  only  a  short  distance,  lead 
in  the  direction  of  the  truth.  If  this  belief  is  well  founded, 
then  the  cure  for  honest  scientific  scepticism  ought  to  be 
found,  by  following  these  lines  into  the  infinite  spiritual 
domain  toward  which  they  tend. 

The  being  of  God  must  be  at  once  the  fundamental  and 
the  supreme  fact  of  philosophy,  the  Alpha  and  the  Omega, 
the  beginning  and  the  end  of  all  knowledge.  This  truth 
cannot  be  successfully  disregarded.  One  thinker  after 
another  makes  the  attempt,  and  presents  his  scheme  of 
philosophy,  from  which  the  Deity  is  omitted,  and  in  which 
our  dependence  on  Him  for  the  revelation  of  truth  is 
ignored.  These  schemes  are  all  alike  destitute  of  the 
principle  of  life,  and  so  must  meet  the  same  fate.  On 
their  appearance  they  are  often  extravagantly  lauded. 
The  next  generation  has  thinkers  of  its  own,  and  their 
predecessors  are  neglected. 

As  God  is  omnipresent  in  nature,  so  He  should  be 
present  in  every  thought  of  nature.  If  in  reality  every 
thing  in  nature  is  the  expression  of  His  love,  then  any 
conception  of  any  thing  in  nature  to  which  the  love  of 
God  is  not  fundamental  must  be  at  Jeast  an  incomplete 
conception.  It  is  to  be  borne  in  mind,  that  science  is  not 
the  knowledge  of  physical  truth  in  its  reality,  but  that  its 
generalizations  are  the  conceptions  which  men  form  of 
such  truth,  which  is  a  very  different  thing.  These  con- 
ceptions are  as  yet  limited  and  gross.  This  feature 
marks  the  earlier  stage  of  the  growth  or  development 


NATURAL  RELIGION.  22 / 

of  scientific  thought.  The  study  of  nature  necessarily 
begins  with  the  observation  of  things,  which  can  be 
measured  and  weighed,  and  of  facts  and  phenomena,  on 
which  all  knowledge  of  truth  must  be  founded.  Also, 
in  accounting  for  phenomena  the  mind  at  first  looks  no 
further  than  it  is  obliged  to.  The  perception  of  the 
deepest  spiritual  realities  must  be  a  later  attainment. 

It  is  safe  to  say  that,  when  science  emerges  from  its 
chrysalis  state,  it  will  no  longer  make  it  its  great  object 
to  arrest  man's  thought  at  the  point  where  his  own  being 
begins.  It  will  not  refuse  to  admit  the  highest  truths  into 
consciousness.  Out  of  the  infinity  of  relations  that  exist 
between  what  is  called  matter  and  man  and  God,  as  these 
relations  are  manifested  in  the  physical  creation,  it  will 
not  select  the  lowest  of  all,  or  the  relations  between  differ- 
ent forms  of  matter,  as  the  only  ones  to  which  attention  is 
to  be  directed. 

The  false  philosophy,  that  divides  the  human  mind  into 
imaginary  separate  natures,  and  that  imagines  truth,  as 
being  of  divers  kinds,  corresponding  to  one  and  the  other 
of  these  different  natures,  and  that  rejects  the  emotional 
nature  as  a  source  of  knowledge,  lies  at  the  bottom  of 
our  present  conventional  and  mistaken  habits  of  thought. 

The  cure,  by  which  this  condition,  so  disastrous  in  its 
effects,  is  to  be  remedied,  must  therefore  be  of  a  radical 
character.  When  this  cure  shall  be  effected,  the  fact  will 
appear,  most  obvious  and  prominent,  that  the  spiritual 
truth  of  the  love  of  God  underlies  and  manifests  itself 
throughout  the  physical  creation ;  and  that  in  this  mani- 
festation or  revelation  of  God  to  man  creation  fulfils  its 
highest  purpose.  It  will  be  in  the  recognition  of  this  fact, 
which  hitherto  has  not  been  generally  recognized,  by  either 
theological  or  philosophical  minds,  that  religion  and  science 
will  meet. 


BEAUTY. 


WE  are  so  constituted,  that  the  appearances  of  the  physi- 
cal creation,  or  those  manifestations  of  force  which  are 
observable  by  our  senses,  generally  awaken  within  us 
pleasurable  sensations  or  emotions.  The  feelings  which 
are  thus  excited  are  various,  both  in  kind  and  in  degree. 
They  differ  with  the  different  characters  of  the  objects 
observed,  and  also,  in  degree  especially,  with  the  different 
characters  of  the  minds  observing  them. 

Those  feelings  may  all  be  comprised  under  the  term 
pleasurable  ;  and,  in  a  like  general  sense,  beauty  may  be 
employed  to  express  all  the  qualities,  by  the  contempla- 
tion of  which  these  pleasurable  emotions  are  awakened. 
This  general  sense  suits  our  present  purpose.  In  this 
sense  beauty  in  nature  is  that  quality  which  is  recognized 
with  a  sensation  of  pleasure  by  the  beautiful  mind. 

The  first  remarkable  fact  about  beauty  is  its  universality. 
This  can  hardly  escape  the  notice  of  even  the  most  super- 
ficial observer.  In  all  the  universe,  with  occasional  excep- 
tions obviously  abnormal,  every  sight  and  sound  is  adapted 
to  awaken  in  the  mind  some  kind  and  degree  of  pleasura- 
ble emotion.  From  the  glory  of  the  starry  heavens,  and 
the  indescribable  splendor  of  the  sun,  throughout  every- 
thing that  is  revealed  by  its  light,  even  to  the  most 
minute  organism,  every  appearance  in  nature,  great  and 
small,  distant  and  near,  in  sky  and  earth  and  sea,  animate 

228 


BEAUTY.  229 

as  well  as  inanimate,  addresses  itself,  either  in  form,  or 
color,  or  sound,  or  motion,  or  in  one  and  another  of  these 
modes  together,  with  a  greater  or  lesser  degree  of  impres- 
siveness,  to  our  feeling  of  sympathy  with  beauty,  or  to 
the  beautiful  in  our  own  nature. 

Beauty  is,  moreover,  endlessly  varied  and  ever  new. 
The  variety  of  its  expressions  may,  with  propriety,  be 
described  as  infinite.  The  healthy  mind  never  becomes 
weary  of  their  contemplation,  but  on  the  contrary  grows 
more  and  more  enamoured  of  them.  It  hails  every  new 
manifestation  of  beauty  with  new  delight,  and  dwells 
upon  every  familiar  one  with  deepening  awe,  or  with 
more  tender  affection.  Whatever  the  meaning  of  it  may 
be,  beauty  is  all  about  us,  enveloping  us  on  every  side. 
All  our  associations  are  with  that  which  is  adapted,  in 
degree  without  end,  to  give  to  us  delight. 

But  what  is  beauty  ?  Why  is  it  universal  in  nature  ? 
How  comes  it  to  be  infinitely  diversified  and  yet  the  same  ? 
Why  is  it  that  we  derive  pleasure  from  the  sight  and  con- 
templation of  it  ?  Before  these  questions  can  be  answered, 
we  have  to  disabuse  our  minds  completely  of  the^conven- 
tional,  artificial,  and  false  education  respecting  this  subject 
that  we  have  received. 

All  progress  in  thought  is  embarrassed  by  the  systems 
and  contrivances  of  men.  We  are  the  victims  of  a  mania 
for  classification,  by  means  of  which  all  idea  of  the  unity 
of  truth  is  lost.  Strong  minds  map  out  their  imaginary 
schemes.  To  them  and  their  followers  these  schemes 
stand  in  the  place  of  the  truth.  Much  of  what  is  called 
education  consists  in  the  handing  down  of  these  devices 
from  learner  to  learner,  each  generation  in  turn  teaching 
to  the  next  what  it  has  itself  been  taught.  When  origi- 
nality appears,  it  commonly  does  so  in  a  new  system,  more 
artificial  than  the  old.  By  these  means,  both  the  unity  of 


230  BEAUTY. 

truth  and  also  the  unity  of  our  own  spiritual  being  grow 
continually  more  obscured,  and  the  mind  seems  to  lose, 
and  undoubtedly  it  does  in  some  degree  lose,  the  power 
to  apprehend  them. 

Beauty  presents  a  striking  instance  of  this  perversity. 
In  the  last  century,  a  German  professor  invented  the 
aesthetic  sense.  This  discovery  supplied  a  long-felt  want. 
In  the  division  of  the  human  mind,  no  place  had  been 
made  for  beauty.  The  intellectual  faculties  would  have 
nothing  to  do  with  it  ;  it  could  not  be  weighed  or 
measured,  nor  made  the  subject  of  demonstration.  On 
the  other  hand,  ethics  had  no  place  for  it ;  for  no  idea  of 
right  or  wrong  could  be  affixed  to  it.  The  intellect  and 
the  moral  sense  were  thus  defined  and  limited  and  occu- 
pied, and  beauty  was  left  out  in  the  cold.  It  was  obviously 
necessary,  if  mankind  were  to  know  any  thing  about 
beauty,  that  a  special  faculty  should  be  contrived  for  the 
purpose.  So  all  men  hailed  this  discovery  of  the  aesthetic 
sense,  which  was  to  extricate  them  from  such  a  serious 
dilemma,  just  as  pagans  were  wont  to  hail  a  new  divinity. 
Since  then,  by  common  consent,  every  thing  pertaining 
to  beauty  has  been  committed  to  this  imaginary  separate 
faculty  ;  just  as,  in  the  imagination  of  men,  the  winds 
were  once  committed  to  the  care  of  ^Eolus,  and  the  sea  to 
the  care  of  Neptune. 

The  idea  of  an  aesthetic  sense  was  a  natural  outgrowth 
of  the  general  tendency  to  artificial  classification.  It  only 
added  another  to  the  existing  list  >of  imaginary  mental 
faculties.  These  must  all  be  swept  away  together.  The 
simple  truth  must  be  recognized,  that  the  mind  is  a  unit, 
and  that  what  have  been  conceived  as  different  faculties, 
are  only  different  modes  of  activity  of  the  same  conscious 
spirit,  which  modes  of  activity  are  combined  in  various 
degrees  in  every  mental  operation.  There  is,  in  truth,  no 


BEAUTY.  231 

result  or  state  that  is  reached  by  any  mind,  whether  this 
be  a  perception,  or  a  conclusion,  or  an  emotion,  that  is 
not  the  effect  of  the  cooperation  of  various  modes  of  our 
spiritual  activity,  as  the  occasion  calls  for  their  exercise. 
The  correct  apprehension  of  any  form  of  truth  involves 
the  harmonious  exercise  of  many  forms  of  this  activity. 
It  follows,  that  in  order  to  be  capable  of  any  such  appre- 
hension, we  need  the  symmetrical  development  of  every 
potential  mode  of  our  spiritual  activity.  We  shall  find 
this  to  be  true  in  an  especial  degree  in  the  case  of  beauty. 
Instead  of  beauty  being  apprehended  by  us  through  a 
medium  of  its  own,  which  is  neither  an  intellectual  faculty 
nor  a  moral  sense,  the  truth  is,  that  beauty  is  above  all 
things  of  a  nature  that  demands  for  its  perception  or 
recognition  the  cooperation  of  every  form  of  activity  of 
which  our  spirits  are  capable. 

In  the  last  analysis,  beauty  is  found  to  be  one  mode  of 
expression  of  the  love  of  God.  It  is  thus  always  associ- 
ated with  the  practical  expressions  of  the  same  love.  Both 
combine  to  reveal  the  very  heart  of  the  Father.  Like 
the  love  which  it  expresses,  it  exists  in  infinite  degree. 
Like  that  love  also  it  is  revealed  to  us  by  our  recognition 
of  it.  No  mind  can  perceive  beauty  in  nature  in  degree 
greater  than  its  own.  Only  the  perfect,  or  perfectly 
beautiful,  spirit  can  perceive  beauty  in  its  full  reality,  or 
be  capable  of  the  perfect  joy  that  its  recognition  inspires. 

Descending  from  this  contemplation  of  the  very  nature 
of  beauty,  we  next  find  it  to  be  the  manifestation  of 
excellence.  The  works  of  God,  in  their  normal  develop- 
ment, are  perfect.  Beauty  is  the  sign  of  this  practical 
perfection.  In  those  works  the  mind  spontaneously  and 
necessarily  recognizes  that  degree  of  beauty  that  it  itself 
possesses,  or  that  it  is  capable  of  perceiving. 


232  BEAUTY. 

The  association  of  beauty  with  utility  is  a  subject  of  pro- 
found interest.  In  nature  every  thing  has  its  use  or  its 
multiplied  uses.  Our  observation  is  sufficiently  extensive 
to  warrant  this  general  conclusion.  More  than  this,  every 
thing  in  nature  is  in  a  state  of  activity,  cooperating  in  har- 
mony with  every  thing  else  for  beneficent  purposes.  This 
also  is  a  well-established  conclusion.  With  this  activity, 
and  with  all  these  uses,  beauty  is  invariably  and  intimately 
associated.  Indeed,  this  association  is  so  uniform  and  so 
intimate,  that  use  and  beauty  appear  to  be  identical.  In 
nature  beauty  may  be  defined  to  be  fitness  for  beneficent 
uses.  This  is  a  true  and  an  instructive  definition.  It  is 
in  entire  harmony  with  both  the  definitions  which  have 
already  been  given.  It  indicates  the  active  nature  of  the 
love  which  beauty  represents,  and  also  the  character  of 
the  mind  that  is  in  harmony  with  this  love,  or  by  which  it 
can  be  truly  perceived.  In  the  light  of  this  relation  be- 
tween utility  and  beauty,  the  comprehensive  nature  of 
beauty,  and  the  fact  that  its  proper  apprehension  calls  for 
the  exercise  of  all  modes  of  our  spiritual  activity,  in  the 
fulness  of  their  symmetrical  development,  will  become 
obvious. 

Our  proposition  then  is,  that  the  beauty  of  any  thing  in 
nature  consists  in  its  fitness  for  practical  beneficent  uses. 
This  undoubtedly  will  shock  many  aesthetic  minds.  Minds 
accustomed  to  look  up  to  beauty  and  to  look  down  upon 
utility  will  be  likely  to  resent  the  attempt  to  bring  these 
together  in  our  thought.  Such  aesthetic  sentimentality  is, 
however,  morbid  and  false.  It  is  another  effect  of  our 
education,  which  we  need  to  get  rid  of.  The  association 
of  utility  with  beauty  is  universal  in  nature.  As  we  have 
seen  it  to  be  the  nature  of  divine  love  to  manifest  itself  in 
all  practical  modes  of  expression,  so  beauty  in  its  reality 
cannot  be  divorced  from  practical  utility.  The  mind  that 


BEA  UTY.  233 

is  itself  in  any  degree  fitted  for  beneficent  uses  feels  the 
harmony  that  exists  between  itself  and  such  objects  in 
nature,  and  they  appear  beautiful  to  it  just  in  that  degree. 
The  spirit  rejoices  in  the  harmony  that  it  feels. 

It  is  customary  to  say  that,  in  the  harmonies  of  nature, 
fitness,  so  far  as  we  have  discovered  it,  is  invariably  found 
to  be  associated  with  beauty.  This  conclusion  has  been 
compelled,  as  the  result  of  all  observation.  One  step  fur- 
ther brings  us  to  the  necessary  reason  of  this  invariable 
association.  Both  represent 'the  same  deep  reality.  We 
cannot  separate  them.  The  longer  our  minds  dwell  upon 
their  relations,  the  more  absolute  their  identity  appears. 
For  us  it  is  strictly  true  that  fitness  is  beauty.  It  is 
deeply  interesting  to  trace  this  identity  of  beauty  in  na- 
ture with  fitness  for  beneficent  uses,  even  the  little  way 
that  our  limited  knowledge  of  such  uses  enables  us  to 
perceive  this  identity. 

We  are  able  to  perceive  this  fitness  in  the  forms  of  natu- 
ral objects  to  a  much  greater  extent  than  in  any  other 
feature  of  them,  and  so  it  is  especially  in  these  forms  that 
we  perceive  the  identity  of  this  fitness  with  beauty. 
For  illustration,  the  outlines  of  fishes  and  of  birds  are  lines 
of  grace,  their  forms  are  beautiful,  the  observation  of  them 
gives  us  pleasure.  But  these  are  the  outlines  and  the 
forms  that  adapt  the  fishes  and  the  birds  for  moving  most 
easily  and  most  accurately  through  the  water  and  the  air, 
and  which  are  indispensable  to  these  purposes.  Their 
movements  are  also  always  in  graceful  and  pleasing  lines ; 
but  the  laws  of  force  and  motion  do  not  permit  these 
movements  to  be  in  any  other'  lines,  except  those  which, 
are  graceful  and  pleasing. 

So,  universally,  we  admire  the  proportions  and  the  struct- 
ure of  every  creation  in  the  animal  and  the  vegetable  king- 
doms. Every  new  observation  of  them  makes  a  fresh 


234  BEAUTY. 

appeal  to  our  admiration.  The  sight  of  every  part  as  well 
as  of  the  whole  of  every  organism  gives  us  pleasure.  In 
most  cases  we  are  able  to  perceive  that  the  form  and  pro- 
portions and  structure  that  we  admire  are  precisely  those 
that  enable  each  member  of  the  organism  to  perform  its 
function  most  perfectly.  The  foliage  of  plants,  for  ex- 
ample, is  a  crown  of  beauty.  It  is  also  the  organ  through 
which  the  plants  breathe,  where  goes  on  that  wonderful 
combination  of  mineral  substances  with  carbon,  which 
seems  to  be  the  first  stage  of  the  vital  operations,  that 
result  in  the  growth  and  development  of  the  plant. 
These  all  depend  upon  the  extent  of  leaf  surface  that 
is  presented  to  the  sunlight  and  the  air.  The  whole 
structure  of  every  tree  or  plant  is  adapted  to  effect  this 
extended  exposure,  and  to  maintain  it  against  the  force  of 
storms. 

Two  things  are  here  to  be  noted.  First,  the  adaptation 
of  animal  and  vegetable  structure  or  form  to  practical 
beneficent  uses  is  carried  to  an  extreme  of  detail  that 
very  far  transcends  our  powers  of  observation.  Every 
new  exploration  discloses  in  these  forms  uses  and  adapta- 
tions to  uses,  that  were  unknown  to  us  before,  and  in 
every  case  the  completeness  of  this  adaptation  fills  our 
minds  with  wonder.  The  deeper  we  go,  also,  the  more  we 
become  impressed  with  the  really  superficial  character  of 
any  observations  of  which  we  are  capable.  Secondly, 
the  perception  of  the  fitness  of  any  form  in  nature  for  its 
use  increases  its  beauty  in  our  eyes,  and  deepens  exceed- 
ingly the  pleasure  with  which  we  regard  it.  The  percep- 
tion of  its  useful  office  is  not  indeed  necessary  to  our 
recognition  of  its  beauty  in  a  degree,  but  it  is  certain 
that  when  the  office  of  any  form,  and  its  wonderful 
adaptation  and  fitness  for  this  office,  are  seen,  its  beauty 
in  our  sight  is  greatly  enhanced. 


BEAUTY.  235 

We  perceive  that  even  with  respect  to  forms  in  nature, 
our  apprehension  of  their  fitness  for  their  uses  is  extremely 
limited,  and  is,  for  the  most  part,  confined  to  their  general 
features.  When  we  pass  from  forms  to  the  consideration 
of  colors,  we  are  obliged  to  admit  that  our  knowledge  of 
the  uses  of  these  is  very  slight  indeed.  It  is  to  be  ob- 
served, however,  that  while  in  detail  our  perception  of 
the  uses  of  colors  is  so  greatly  inferior  to  our  perception 
of  the  uses  of  forms  in  nature,  that,  with  few  exceptions, 
we  cannot  be  said  to  have  any  distinct  idea  of  their  uses 
at  all,  still,  in  a  general  or  comprehensive  view  we  get 
quite  as  certain  a  realization  of  the  identity  of  beauty 
with  utility  in  the  case  of  color.  All  glory  and  all  beauty 
of  color  are  contained  in  light.  And  of  all  useful  things 
light  is,  beyond  comparison,  the  most  useful.  Into  the 
infinite  details  of  its  universal  work  and  service  we  have 
no  power  to  penetrate.  We  observe,  however,  in  nature 
an  inconceivable  number  of  beneficent  results,  which  are 
being  everywhere  perpetually  effected  by  the  agency  of 
light,  although  we  cannot  see  how.  There  must  be  con- 
tained in  light  this  multitude  of  adaptations  to  beneficent 
uses,  that  are  hidden  from  us.  To  doubt,  then,  the  identity 
of  beauty  with  utility  in  the  case  of  color,  because  we  are 
not  able  to  trace  this  identity,  in  the  mystery  of  the  action 
of  light,  while  we  are  literally  enveloped  in  its  beneficent 
results,  would  clearly  be  absurd.  On  the  contrary,  we  are 
warranted  in  concluding,  in  fact  we  cannot  resist  the  con- 
clusion, that  what  we  find  to  be  true,  so  far  as  our  observa- 
tion extends,  is  true  universally, — that  not  only  every  form 
but  also  every  color  in  nature  has  its  beneficent  use  or  mul- 
titude of  uses,  and  that  this  is  the  real  reason  why  they 
both  appear  beautiful  in  our  sight. 

We  sometimes  observe,  too,  in  the  case  of  color  obvious 
instances  of  the  identity  of  beauty  with  fitness.  For  a 


236  BE  A  UTY. 

prominent  example,  green  is  the  general  color  in  the  vege- 
table clothing  of  the  earth.  It  is  also  the  color  that  is 
most  grateful  to  our  organs  of  sight  in  their  healthy  state, 
and  which  exerts  the  most  healing  influence  upon  these 
organs  when  they  are  impaired.  This  adaptation  seems, 
however,  to  be  only  an  incidental  one,  the  green  rays 
being  those  which  are  not  absorbed  by  the  leaves  of  plants. 

In  this  general  view,  to  which,  except  in  rare  cases,  we 
appear  to  be  limited,  the  utility  of  beauty  of  color  seems 
indeed  to  be  capable  of  proof  approaching  very  nearly  to 
demonstration,  as  follows  :  According  to  the  best  idea  of 
it  that  we  can  form,  color  is  only  the  effect  that  is  pro- 
duced on  our  minds,  through  our  organs  of  sight,  by  the 
vibrations  of  the  supposed  luminiferous  ether,  just  as 
sound  is  the  effect  on  our  minds,  produced  through  our  or- 
gans of  hearing  by  the  pulsations  of  the  air ;  each  color  and 
shade  being  the  effect  of  a  particular  rate  of  vibration. 
What  we  call  colors,  however,  are  these  vibrations  them- 
selves. Now  it  is  by  its  vibrations  that  the  luminiferous 
ether  produces  the  infinite  variety  of  its  useful  effects. 
These  vibrations  constitute  light  ;  the  cessation  of  them  is 
darkness. 

Still  objecting  to  this  view,  one  may  ask,  what  utility  is 
to  be  found  in  the  beauty  of  sunset  or  sunrise  or  rainbow. 
It  may  be  admitted  that  no  utility  is  discoverable  in  any 
of  these,  and  still  the  strength  of  our  position,  that  beauty 
and  utility  are  one  and  the  same  thing  in  the  case  of  color, 
is  not  in  the  least  impaired.  Light,  emanating  from  the 
sun,  fills  the  entire  space  of  the  solar  system.  But  of  this 
light,  that  portion  which  impinges  upon  the  earth,  or 
on  all  the  planets  together,  is  almost  inconceivably  small. 
Moreover,  of  that  small  portion  of  its  light  which  is  radi- 
ated from  the  sun  in  the  plane  of  the  earth's  orbit,  those 
beams  which  are  radiated  in  any  given  direction,  only 


BEAUTY.  237 

once  in  a  year,  for  the  space,  at  the  longest,  of  less  than 
eight  minutes,  exercise  their  power  upon  the  flying 
earth.  Nevertheless,  we  know  that  all  life,  both  vegeta- 
ble and  animal,  as  well  as  all  motion  on  the  earth,  are  de- 
pendent on  the  light  of  the  sun.  It  is  therefore  evident, 
that  while  in  the  case  of  light  beauty  and  utility  are  one, 
still,  for  want  of  an  object,  the  utility  only  rarely  becomes 
effective,  but  for  the  most  part  exists  as  potential  utility. 

It  is  to  be  borne  in  mind,  that  the  preceding  observa- 
tions have  been  made  with  reference  to  beauty  of  form 
and  color  IN  NATURE:  In  the  imitative,  or,  speaking  more 
correctly,  the  representative,  works  of  man,  beauty  gives 
us  pleasure  through  the  law  of  association.  It  suggests 
to  us  that  in  nature  with  which  our  spirits  are  in  harmony. 
Among  the  works  of  man,  architecture  affords  some  of 
the  most  convincing  illustrations  of  the  identity  of  beauty 
with  fitness.  Architecture  is  not  strictly  an  imitative  art, 
but  is  one  in  which  in  a  subordinate  sense  man  is  himself 
a  creator,  and  in  which  he  is  required  to  conform  his  work 
to  the  harmonies  of  nature.  In  architecture  it  has  been 
invariably  found,  so  that  it  has  .become  an  established 
canon  of  the  art,  that  complete  fitness  of  every  part  of  a 
structure  for  its  use,  when  this  fitness  comes  to  be  realized, 
is  identical  with  beauty. 

In  the  perception  of  beauty,  all  the  modes  of  our  spirit- 
ual activity,  so  far  as  these  are  called  into  exercise,  must 
harmonize,  like  the  strings  of  an  instrument.  As  already 
observed,  it  is  not  necessary  that  we  should  have  the 
intellectual  apprehension  of  the  fitness  of  any  thing  for  its 
use,  in  order  that  we  shall  feel  the  sense  of  harmony  and 
regard  the  object  as  beautiful.  But  if  in  any  case  we  do 
have  this  perception  of  fitness,  then  this  perception  must 
be  satisfied,  or  else  the  object  cannot  appear  beautiful 
to  us. 


238  BEAUTY. 

This  is  a  test  that,  of  course,  we  are  able  to  apply  only 
in  cases  of  known  unfitness  of  an  object  for  its  use.  Such 
cases  cannot  be  found  in  nature.  For  examples  of  such  a 
want  of  fitness,  we  must  look  to  the  works  of  men.  Here, 
indeed,  unfitness,  in  some  respect  or  degree,  of  a  construc- 
tion for  its  use  constitutes  the  rule  rather  than  the  ex- 
ception, and  offends  the  mind  that  has  been  educated  to 
perceive  this  unfitness.  Architecture  would  afford  many 
illustrations  in  point.  We  must  confine  ourselves  to  one 
of  an  obvious  nature. 

The  office  of  the  foundation  of  any  building  is  to  sustain 
the  superstructure.  This  demands  solidity  and  strength. 
These  are  the  essential  qualities  of  a  foundation.  All  its 
features  ought  to  suggest  these  qualities.  Whatever 
would  detract  from  its  appropriate  solidity  and  strength, 
or  would  suggest  ideas  inconsistent  with  such  solidity  and 
strength,  is  out  of  place  in  a  foundation.  Now  we  have 
seen  ornamental  work  introduced  into  a  foundation,  with 
the  obvious  effect  of  weakening  it,  or  at  least  of  convey- 
ing ideas  inconsistent  with  those  of  solidity  and  strength. 
In  a  suitable  place  those  forms  might  give  pleasure,  but 
here  their  incongruity  is  shocking  to  the  educated  mind. 

Machinery,  where,  as  in  the  case  of  architecture,  man  is 
himself  the  creator,  affords  admirable  illustrations  of  the 
same  truth.  Here  we  are  able  to  see,  also,  with  peculiar 
distinctness,  the  necessity  for  harmony  through  all  the 
modes  of  our  spiritual  activity,  if  any  thing  is  to  appear 
beautiful  to  us.  The  illustrations  of  these  truths  that 
may  be  drawn  from  machinery  possess  an  especial  force 
and  value,  because  here  all  uses  lie  within  our  comprehen- 
sion, even  more  fully  than  they  do  in  the  case  of  architect- 
ure; and  the  fitness  of  every  part  of  any  machine,  and  of 
the  machine  as  a  whole,  for  its  use  can  be  determined 
in  a  more  unmistakable  manner.  Every  machine  has  its 


BEAUTY.  239 

special  use.  This  use  was  proposed  by  its  constructor, 
and  he  has  made  all  the  adaptations  of  the  several  parts, 
and  of  the  whole,  of  the  mechanism  to  its  accomplish- 
ment, and  the  degree  of  success  or  failure  is  a  matter  of 
certain  observation.  To  the  instructed  mechanical  engi- 
neer no  mechanical  forms  or  proportions  can  appear  beauti- 
ful, unless  a  good  mechanical  reason  can  be  given  for 
them.  Those  forms  and  proportions  are  always  the  most 
graceful  and  elegant  that  most  completely  fulfil  mechani- 
cal requirements.  We  are  able  to  see  at  once,  that  the 
pleasure  which  the  builder  of  any  machine  can  derive  from 
the  contemplation  of  his  work,  all  the  beauty  that  it  can 
possess  in  his  eyes,  depends  wholly  upon  his  perception 
of  its  fitness,  or  of  what  he  believes  to  be  its  fitness,  for 
the  use  for  which  it  was  designed.  The  same  is  true 
also  of  any  observer  who  has  a  knowledge  of  such  uses. 

Now  with  respect  to  this  fitness,  we  are  in  reality 
always  in  a  greater  or  lesser  degree  mistaken.  Nothing 
perfectly  fitted  for  its  use  was  ever  made  by  man.  Still, 
especially  in  our  own  work,  we  cannot  see  all  the  imper- 
fections. All  will  admit,  however,  that  in  machine  con- 
struction perfection  is  an  ideal  that  men  may  always  be 
striving  after,  but  can  never  reach.  We  may,  however, 
observe  that,  just  in  the  degree  that  we  imagine  ourselves 
to  have  attained  a  high  point  of  excellence  in  any  mechan- 
ical construction,  just  in  that  degree  will  its  forms  appear 
beautiful  to  us.  I  was  once  asked  by  a  steam-engine 
builder,  as  he  contemplated  his  own  work  with  an  expres- 
sion of  absolute  satisfaction  and  delight :  "  Why  is  not 
that  a  perfect  engine  ?  "  My  own  view  was  so  different, 
that  I  was  quite  shocked  by  the  question.  Such  satis- 
faction designers  always  feel,  so  long  as  they  do  not  know 
any  better.  But  when  afterwards,  from  enlarged  knowl- 
edge, probably  obtained  by  that  agreeable  process  known 
\ 


240  BEAUTY. 

as  experience,  we  have  come  to  see  that  our  work  is  in 
fact,  in  some  degree  or  respect,  unsuitable  for  its  purpose, 
all  becomes  changed.  Now  we  look  upon  the  same  forms, 
but  their  beauty  has  vanished.  The  sight  of  them  is  no 
longer  pleasing.  They  fail  to  satisfy  our  ideal.  We  can 
no  longer  pronounce  them  good. 

In  the  earlier  days  of  machine  construction,  before  this 
construction  became  a  science,  through  the  study  of  its 
underlying  principles,  it  was  the  custom  to  employ  archi- 
tectural forms,  these  being  the  forms  with  which  designers 
of  machines  were  already  acquainted  ;  and  very  beautiful 
these  adaptations  of  classic  and  Gothic  features  were 
thought  to  be.  As,  however,  the  unfitness  of  these  forms 
to  resist  and  to  transmit  mechanical  stress,  and  to  per- 
form the  various  functions  which  are  demanded,  came  to 
be  perceived,  and  the  necessity  for  entirely  new  forms, 
designed  to  meet  a  new  class  of  requirements,  and  for 
freedom  in  such  new  designs,  untrammelled  by  the  attempt 
to  retain  old  forms  in  any  degree,  came  to  be  realized, 
how  rapidly  and  how  utterly  did  all  the  once  fancied 
beauty  of  these  forms  in  such  constructions  disappsar. 

Illustrations  of  this  nature  show  us  also  that  beauty  is 
the  expression  of  all  excellence.  All  modes  of  our  spirit- 
ual activity  must  harmonize  in  the  song  of  beauty.  Here 
also  "good"  is  a  word  of  comprehensive  significance. 
Before  we  can  pronounce  this  word  over  any  mechanical 
work,  whether  it  be  our  own,  or  that  of  another  mind,  our 
sense  of  justice  must  above  all  be  satisfied.  We  must 
be  conscious  in  our  own  case,  and  must  feel  assured  in 
any  other,  that  the  highest  fidelity  has  been  exercised. 
No  product  of  the  labor  and  skill,  of  either  ourselves  or 
another,  can  appear  beautiful  in  our  sight,  unless  we  feel 
that  it  is  the  very  best  offering  that  we  or  they  had  been 
able  to  brine. 


BEAUTY.  241 

Reflections  of  this  nature  render  it  obvious  that  the 
moral  quality  is  fundamental  in  beauty,  as  we  have  seen 
it  to  be  in  physical  truth.  In  considering  the  beauty 
manifested  in  all  the  works  of  God,  the  spirit  of  man  in 
its  unity,  going  forth  in  every  form  of  its  activity,  must 
bow  in  admiration  and  wonder  before  that  perfection,  the 
varied  forms  of  which  are  combined  to  constitute  this 
beauty,  and  which  was  pronounced  by  the  Infinite  Maker 
himself  to  be  "  very  good." 

We  pass  now  from  things  to  beings.  Here  a  remarka- 
ble correspondence  appears.  The  same  qualities  charm 
us  in  both.  We  cannot  distinguish  between  the  feelings 
with  which  we  regard  a  beautiful  landscape  and  those 
with  which  we  regard  a  beautiful  character.  We  are  awed 
alike  by  grandeur  of  scenery  and  by  grandeur  of  soul.  The 
same  harmony  between  ourselves  and  our  ideal  is  felt  in 
each  case  alike.  We  perceive  at  once  the  duality  and  the 
unity  of  the  creation.  It  is  true  that  the  false  education, 
that  would  deprive  the  physical  creation  of  its  supreme 
quality  in  the  moral  element,  would  hide  this  unity  from 
our  sight.  The  mind  that  sees  God  in  his  works  will, 
however,  discover  the  manifestation  of  moral  excellence 
to  be  supremely  made  in  the  landscape. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  delight  with  which 
spiritual  as  well  as  physical  beauty  is  regarded  by  us  pro- 
ceeds from  a  similar  recognition.  But  what  is  it  that  we  so 
spontaneously  recognize?  What  is  it  that,  in  each  of  these 
two  classes  of  objects  alike,  awakens  within  us  emotions  of 
pleasure,  proportionate  to  our  capacity  for  such  recognition? 
There  must  be  a  reason,  in  some  quality  that  is  common  to 
both  physical  and  spiritual  beauty,  why  any  created  thing 
or  being  should  have  power  to  awaken  these  pleasing  emo- 
tions in  our  minds,  and  so  should  appear  to  us  beautiful. 
This  common  quality  is  found  in  fitness  for  beneficent  uses. 


242  BEAUTY. 

The  fact  that  in  a  moral  being  fitness  for  beneficent 
uses  is  the  quality  the  recognition  of  which  gives  pleasure 
to  us,  just  in  the  degree  that  we  possess  this  fitness  our- 
selves, is  shown  quite  conclusively,  when  we  consider  the 
opposite  of  this  fitness,  or  fitness  for  injurious  and  destruc- 
tive purposes.  The  latter  is  the  fitness  in  the  contempla- 
tion of  which  the  abnormal  or  depraved  mind  rejoices. 
This  is  the  fitness  with  which  such  a  mind  is  in  harmony. 
This  awakens  sensations  of  pleasure  in  such  a  nature. 
To  it  this  is  what  appears  beautiful.  This  was  the 
mutual  fitness  that  caused  Fagan  to  be  regarded  with 
admiration  by  his  pupils  in  crime. 

Here  we  have  shown  to  us  a  law  of  our  nature.  We 
derive  pleasure  from  seeing  in  others  our  own  likeness,  or 
our  ideal.  We  feel  a  harmony  existing  between  ourselves 
and  that  in  another  which  represents  either  that  which 
we  are  conscious  we  are,  or  that  which  we  would  be. 
Toward  this,  whatever  it  may  be,  we  are  attracted,  and 
are  repelled  from  its  opposite.  The  one  is  contemplated 
by  us  with  delight.  The  other  we  regard  with  aversion. 

So  it  is  always  to  be  observed,  that  it  is  only  in  the 
degree  in  which  the  spirit  is  itself  beautiful,  fit  for  benefi- 
cent uses,  or  in  which  it  feels  a  longing  to  become  so,  that 
it  can  derive  pleasure  from  the  contemplation  either  of  a 
beautiful  character,  or  of  the  beauties  of  nature.  Other- 
wise the  spirit  must  in  a  greater  or  lesser  degree  be  insen- 
sible to  natural  loveliness,  and  must  regard  a  lovely  char- 
acter with  feelings  that  range  from  indifference,  through 
all  degrees  of  aversion,  to  hatred,  according  to  the  degree 
of  antagonism  between  its  own  nature  and  the  nature 
that  it  observes.  Perfect  beauty  of  spirit  was  once  seen 
on  the  earth.  It  aroused  in  malignant  natures  feelings 
that  could  be  satisfied  only  by  its  destruction. 

This  law  also  manifests  itself  in  another  manner,  which 


BE  A  UTY.  243 

has  already  been  dwelt  upon  in  a  previous  paper.  This  is 
the  strong  tendency  of  every  mind  to  see  in  others  its 
own  likeness  or  ideal,  whether  this  be  good  or  bad. 
Whatever  character  may  be  presented  to  us,  the  image 
that,  in  advance  of  evidence  or  experience,  and  to  a  sur- 
prising degree  in  spite  of  evidence  and  experience,  we 
form  in  our  minds,  and  take  to  represent  the  reality,  is 
our  own  conscious  spiritual  likeness.  We  thus  naturally 
expect  and  assume  that  others  will  be  governed  in  their 
conduct  by  the  same  motives  that  we  know  would 
determine  our  own  ;  that  under  the  same  circumstances 
they  will  do  that,  which  we  know  that  we  would  do  our- 
selves. 

On  the  one  hand,  the  innocent,  the  generous,  the  true, 
spontaneously  regard  all  others  as  being  like  themselves. 
"  To  the  pure,  all  things  are  pure."  "  I  do  not  think," 
said  Desdemona,  "  there  is  any  such  woman."  It  is  hard 
to  destroy  this  illusion,  and  the  trust  that  attends  it. 
When  these  are  broken  their  loss  brings  grief  to  the  spirit. 

On  the  other  hand,  those  who  are  in  any  respect  or 
degree  depraved  see  everywhere  in  humanity  the  reflec- 
tion of  their  own  natures.  They  believe  all  men  to  be  at 
heart  like  themselves.  All  apparent  excellence  they  look 
upon  as  hyprocrisy.  It  is  not  ordinarily  possible  for  one 
who  is  himself  governed  by  selfish  or  degrading  motives 
to  believe  that  the  conduct  of  any  one  else  can  be  con- 
trolled by  exalted  and  self-denying  principles. 

"  Wisdom  and  goodness  to  the  vile  seem  vile." 

"  And  when  Joseph's  brethren  saw  that  their  father 
was  dead,  they  said,  Joseph  will  peradventure  hate  us,  and 
will  certainly  requite  us  all  the  evil  that  we  did  unto 
him." 

This  truth  is  expressed  in  the  homely  proverb,  "evil 
doers  are  evil  deemers." 


244  BE  A  UTY. 

I  have  ventured  here  to  return  to  this  subject,  and  dwell 
upon  it  again,  on  account  of  its  singular  importance  in 
this  connection.  It  exhibits  the  law  of  all  spiritual  per- 
ception. It  shows  the  manner  in  which  we  recognize  all 

•*•  o 

spiritual  realities.  Beauty  is  wholly  spiritual.  Beauty  in 
nature  is  the  expression  of  perfection  in  the  divine  con- 
duct. It  is  the  expression  of  the  beauty  of  the  divine 
spirit.  Our  recognition  of  the  moral  quality  of  beauty,  of 
its  true  nature,  is  possible  only  in  the  degree  in  which  we 
are  ourselves  in  harmony  with  that  nature.  Our  ability 
to  recognize  beauty  at  all,  to  derive  any  degree  of  pleasure 
from  its  contemplation,  whether  in  nature  or  in  human 
character  and  conduct,  depends  wholly  upon  the  fitness  of 
our  own  natures  for  beneficent  uses,  in  the  development 
of  their  lovely  capabilities.  We  can  see  without  only 
that  which  we  feel,  and  which  we  are,  within.  For  the 
perception  of  beauty,  whether  seen  in  the  conduct  of  God 
or  in  the  conduct  of  men,  whether  revealing  the  infinite 
love  of  God,  or  the  development  of  the  same  love  in  the 
human  soul,  whatsoever  is  just,  whatsoever  is  pure,  what- 
soever is  true,  whatsoever  is  lovely,  in  our  own  natures, 
must  cooperate.1 

We  now  look  again  upon  the  physical  creation  as  our 
educator.  We  behold  also  the  ministry  of  beauty.  We 
get  a  completer  sense  of  the  great  use  of  all  the  harmonious 
influences  by  which  we  are  surrounded.  We  see  still  more 
clearly  the  supreme  beneficent  purpose  which  these  are 
adapted  to  promote.  By  all  means,  in  cooperative  and 
ceaseless  activity,  the  nature  of  man  is  to  be  transformed. 
For  this  purpose,  who  can  measure  the  influence  of  our 
environment  of  beauty? 

The  primary  end  of  beauty,  in  its  infinite  manifestation 

1  This  is  universally  recognized  in  the  case  of  poetry.  We  derive  pleasure 
from  poetry  just  in  the  degree  that  we  recognize  in  it  the  expression  of  our 
own  feelings.  If  it  does  not  express  such  feelings,  it  is  meaningless  to  us. 


BEAUTY,  245 

in  nature,  is  not  to  give  delight  to  the  spirit  of  man.  This 
delight  is  indeed  necessary,  just  in  the  degree  in  which 
the  human  spirit  is  in  harmony  with  beauty.  But  prece- 
dent to  this,  beauty  has  an  office  to  perform.  In  its 
omnipresence  and  its  infinity  it  has  a  work  to  do.  This 
office,  this  work,  is,  to  aid,  gradually,  insensibly,  in  bring- 
ing the  nature  of  man  into  harmony  with  all  perfection, 
into  fitness  for  its  own  highest  use.  In  beauty  we  have 
another  spiritual  reality,  another  manifestation  of  the 
Infinite  Being,  of  whom  it  is  written  that  "  strength  and 
beauty  are  in  His  sanctuary,"  a  term  by  which  the  uni- 
verse is  understood  to  be  meant,  and  another  means  by 
the  influence  of  which  man  shall  ultimately  be  made  a 
partaker  of  the  nature  of  God. 

We  have  now  seen  the  cooperation  in  this  supreme 
beneficent  work,  of  force,  truth,  beauty,  and  love  in  the 
infinite  variety  of  their  physical  manifestations.  But  for 
this  work  all  these  influences  are  not  sufficient.  The  task 
is  too  great.  More,  very  much  more,  is  needed  even  than 
these.  Nothing  can  be  more  obvious  than  is  this  fact. 
Man  in  his  natural  state  is  dead  to  all  these  influences. 
Some  additional  influence  is  needed.  He  can  be  quick- 
ened from  a  state  of  spiritual  insensibility  only  by  some 
transforming  agency,  that  shall  reach  to  the  very  springs 
of  his  spiritual  being,  and  cause  the  dry  bones  to  live. 

Not  seeking  to  penetrate  to  that  mystery,  the  work  of 
God's  spirit,  but  limiting  our  view  to  the  obvious  means 
which  are  employed,  we  find  this  finally  efficient  agency 
in  suffering. 


SUFFERING. 


WITH  a  feeling  of  awe,  I  approach  the  deep  problems 
of  humanity.  What  has  mechanical  science  to  do  with 
these?  Much  every  way.  This  is  the  science  which  gives 
to  nature  its  true  interpretation.  The  revelations  which 
are  made  to  man  through  the  methods  of  mechanical 
science  rise  by  insensible  gradations  from  those  which  are 
individual  and  particular  up  to  those  which  are  most 
grand  and  comprehensive.  This  science  furnishes  the 
guiding  principles,  by  following  which  we  are  able  to 
penetrate  deeper  and  deeper  into  the  causes  of  phenome- 
na, until  causes  assume  definite  forms  in  our  minds  as  mo- 
tives ;  and,  finally,  the  mind  which  has  within  itself  the  abili- 
ty to  see  that  which  is  everywhere  before  it  reaches  the 
ultimate  truth — that  infinite  and  unchangeable  love  consti- 
tutes the  primary  law  of  nature,  the  supreme  motive  to 
the  conduct  of  God.  This  love  must  supremely  delight 
in  the  moral  excellence  of  the  moral  beings  whom  it  has 
created,  and  must  employ  all  means  to  secure  the  attain- 
ment by  them  of  this  excellence,  until  this  end  is  accom- 
plished. Some  of  the  modes  of  manifestation  of  this 
love,  and  their  cooperation  for  this  purpose,  have  been 
considered.  One  remains  which  transcends  all  others. 

The  guiding  principles  of  thought  above  referred  to, 
and  which  may  be  considered  to  have  been  ascertained, 
either  directly,  or  by  necessary  deduction,  through  the 

246 


SUFFERING.  247 

methods  of  mechanical  science,  have  already  been  before 
us.  It  is  desirable  that  these  should  be  brought  together 
here,  in  a  general  view.  They  may  be  summed  up  as 
follows  : 

First,  The  uniformity  of  the  Divine  conduct,  and  the 
eternal  changelessness  of  the  Divine  purposes. 

Second.  The  certainty  of  the  accomplishment  of  all 
the  purposes  of  God. 

Third.  The  gradual  manner,  often  nearly  or  quite  in- 
sensible, in  which  the  eternal  purposes  of  God  move 
onward  to  their  accomplishment. 

Fourth.  Every  Divine  purpose,  small  as  well  as  great, 
requires  the  cooperation  of  many  and  diverse  agencies. 

Fifth.  All  suitable  agencies  are  uniformly  observed  to 
be  in  perpetual  and  harmonious  activity,  accomplishing 
every  purpose  of  God. 

Through  all  these  purposes,  as  they  are  disclosed  in 
nature,  we  have  seen  that  there  runs  a  unity.  There  is 
obviously  only  one  ultimate  purpose,  which  constitutes  a 
final  end  in  itself.  Every  subordinate  purpose  in  its  own 
accomplishment  becomes  a  means  for  the  accomplishment 
of  a  larger  purpose.  These  purposes  have  been  traced 
step  by  step,  until  we  have  found  the  supreme  end,  in 
the  re-creation  of  man  in  the  spiritual  image  of  God. 
This  end  the  combined  influence  of  every  agency  is  cease- 
lessly exerted  to  effect.  But  these  influences  are  all 
spiritual  and  gentle.  Man,  in  his  natural  debasement  and 
insensibility  and  ferocity,  cannot  be  affected  by  them,  can 
know  nothing  about  them.  By  some  means  he  must  be 
made  alive  to  these  influences,  as  well  as  to  the  purely 
spiritual  manifestations  of  the  same  infinite  love. 

If  one  can  read  both  aright — has  the  spirit  for  the  per- 
ception of  their  harmony — it  is  delightful  to  dwell  upon 
the  supreme  illustration  which  is  afforded  here  of  the 


248  SUFFERING. 

identity  of  the  physical  and  the  verbal  modes  of  revela- 
tion. The  Bible,  equally  with  nature,  makes  the  love  of 
God  to.  man  its  supreme  message,  and  declares  the  neces- 
sary expression  of  this  love.  In  its  own  wonderful  lan- 
guage, language  such  as  no  man  not  directly  inspired 
could  have  conceived,  and  language  which  every  human 
being  may  equally  appropriate,  as  addressed  directly 
to  himself,  it  declares  the  purpose  of  God  to  be,  that 
every  man  shall  become  a  partaker  of  the  Divine 
nature,"  "  a  partaker  of  His  holiness."  This  is  the  final 
end  of  all  the  conduct  of  God,  as  manifested  in  nature  and 
in  the  Bible.  Every  influence  in  nature,  however  insuffi- 
cient these  alone  maybe,  however  insensible  mankind  may 
be  to  them,  is  ceaselessly  exerted,  to  the  full  extent  of  its 
efficiency,  to  bring  man  into  harmony  with  God.  This  is 
also  the  single  declared  purpose  of  the  teaching  of  the 
Christ,  and  the  motive  to  His  death.  This  is  the  single 
object  of  that  infinite  mystery,  the  incarnation  and  the 
suffering  of  the  Son  of  God.  They  who  penetrate  most 
deeply  into  either  nature  or  the  Bible,  come  at  last  in 
both  to  the  same  animating  force  or  motive — universal, 
changeless,  infinite  love. 

To  our  limited  vision  humanity  presents  a  confused 
scene  ; — joy  and  sorrow,  happiness  and  suffering,  in  their 
endless  forms  and  degrees,  estrangement  of  nature  from 
God  more  or  less  entire,  restoration  to  His  image  more  or 
less  incomplete ;  all  being  continually,  and  in  every 
different  stage  of  their  development,  removed  from  our 
further  observation  by  death.  This  scene  and  this  ex- 
perience raise  in  every  mind  questions,  to  which  each  one, 
according  to  the  degree  of  its  earnestness  and  of  its  doubt, 
craves  an  answer. 

The  complete  answer  to  all  these  questions  is  given  in 
the  Bible.  This  revelation  shows  how,,  amid  every  form 


SUFFERING.  249 

of  privation  and  suffering,  every  human  being  may,  even 
in  this  present  life,  attain  to  perfect  happiness,  to  exultant 
and  triumphant  joy,  and  the  peace  which  passeth  all 
understanding.  The  Bible  declares  happiness  to  consist 
in  the  union  of  the  soul  with  God,  and  suffering  itself  to 
be  the  supreme  means  by  which  this  union  is  to  be 
effected.  Suffering  in  all  its  forms  is  thus  presented  to  us 
as  the  ultimate  and  efficient  agency  by  which  this  eternal 
purpose  of  God  is  to  be  accomplished,  and  thus  as  the 
supreme  manifestation  or  expression  of  His  love.  This 
is  the  express  teaching  of  the  Bible.  Attention  is  called 
to  other  considerations  which  prove  this  teaching  to  be 
true. 

No  other  change  ought  to  interest  the  philosophic  mind 
so  deeply  as  this  change  in  the  spiritual  nature  of  man. 
It  is  not  a  change  of  will,  but  a  change  of  that  which 
gives  to  will,  purpose,  resolve,  and  all  activity,  their  direc- 
tion. It  is  not  a  change  of  belief,  except  as  new  beliefs, 
or  rather  new  intuitive  perceptions  and  recognitions, 
follow  necessarily  from  the  change  of  disposition  or 
character.  It  is  eminently  a  practical  change,  or  a  change 
which  must  manifest  itself  in  corresponding  change  of 
conduct.  It  is  a  change  of  the  most  radical  nature.  It 
reaches  all  the  springs  of  "human  activity.  It  is  a  trans- 
formation of  man,  from  a  being  wholly  false  to  a  being 
wholly  true ;  from  a  being  wholly  selfish  to  a  being  wholly 
self-sacrificing  ;  from  a  being  wholly  vindictive  to  a  being 
wholly  forgiving  ;  from  a  being  wholly  hateful  to  a  being 
wholly  lovely  ; — in  short,  from  a  being  in  a  state  of  com- 
plete antagonism  to  the  nature  of  God  to  a  being  in  a 
state  of  complete  harmony  with  that  nature,  a  partaker  of 
it.  It  is  a  change  so  total,  that  it  could  be  expressed  by 
the  Christ  only  under  the  tremendous  figure  of  being  born 
again.  Like  all  the  operations  of  God,  this  change  is 


250  SUFFERING. 

gradual   in  the  individual  and  in  the  race.      We  observe 

o 

this  change  in  its  progress,  and  are  ourselves  the  subjects 
of  it.  All  human  beings  are  in  one  degree  or  another 
affected  by  it.  Probably  none  remain  absolutely  in  the 
former  state,  as  through  the  endless  progress  of  eternity 
none  can  attain  to  the  infinite  holiness  of  the  latter. 
Every  one  is  familiar  with  natures  in  which  such  a  trans- 
formation is  not  conceivable  by  us,  but  there  can  be  no 
exception  or  failure  in  the  purposes  of  God. 

All  the  analogies  of  nature  compel  to  these  conclusions: 
First,  a  change  so  prodigious  can  be  effected  only  by 
strong  agencies,  acting  in  many  cases  through  long  periods 
of  time  ;  second,  if  this  is  the  purpose  of  God  with  respect 
to  one  human  being,  then  it  must  be  equally  his  purpose 
with  respect  to  every  human  being;  and  third,  this  purpose 
must  in  every  case  be  finally  accomplished. 

We  recognize  suffering  as  the  supreme  natural  agency 
employed  in  effecting  this  purpose  ;  we  perceive  its  adap- 
tation to  this  use  sufficiently  to  enable  us  to  form  such 
recognition.  But  the  philosophic  mind  sees  in  the  mere 
fact  of  the  existence  of  suffering  abundant  evidence  that 
it  must  have  been  adapted  and  intended  for  this  use, 
which  all  things  are  designed  to  accomplish.  Suffering 
cannot  form  an  exception.  Suffering  cannot  lie  outside 
the  universal  unity.  Looking  at  human  suffering  from  an 
a  priori  point  of  view,  we  are  obliged  to  say  that  this  must  be 
reconcilable  with  the  infinite  and  changeless  love  of  God. 
The  same  motive  must  determine  the  infliction  of  suffer- 
ing that  determines  all  the  other  conduct  of  God.  Suffer- 
ing must  be  a  mode  of  expression  of  His  love.  More  than 
this,  it  must  be  the  mode  of  expression  of  His  love  which 
is  the  necessary  mode  under  the  the  conditions  which 
exist.  No  other  supposition  is  conceivable  by  a  mind 
which  is  capable  of  reasoning.  We  may  be  dumb  in  the 


SUFFERING.  2$  I 

presence  of  overwhelming  trial,  but  we  cannot  doubt  the 
uniform  action  of  the  infinite  love  of  God. 

With  this  necessary  conclusion  all  human  experience 
agrees.  Mankind  have  received  all  their  temporal  bless- 
ings as  the  result  of  the  sufferings  of  others,  and  have 
been  made  capable  of  receiving  these  benefits  by  suffer- 
ings endured  either  by  themselves  or  by  those  from  whom 
they  have  inherited  their  dispositions.  Vicarious  suffering 
involves  deep  mysteries.  The  relations  which  give  to  it  its 
efficacy  are  only  dimly  perceived  by  us.  But  we  know 
that  the  entire  inheritance  of  civilized  man  has  been  pur- 
chased by  the  suffering  and  death  of  those  who  have  gone 
before  us.  There  is  no  possession  that  men  to-day  cherish 
and  hold  precious  which  has  not  been  purchased  for  them 
with  this  price.  In  the  fundamental  principles  of  civilized 
society,  in  individual  freedom  and  protection,  in  every 
temporal  good,  as  well  as  in  the  capacity  of  mankind  to 
appreciate  and  enjoy  these  benefits,  we  behold  the  fruit  of 
the  sufferings  which  preceding  generations  have  endured. 
Luxury  and  splendor  have  left  us  nothing  which  can 
operate  as  a  present  personal  boon  to  mankind,  abso- 
lutely nothing.  For  all  these  things  we  are  indebted 
to  the  sufferers  who  have  lived  and  died  for  those  who 
were  to  follow  them.  Among  these,  too,  we  find  the  ex- 
amples of  every  virtue  that  we  instinctively  revere,  and  of 
that  conduct  which  it  is  the  noblest  inspiration  of  human- 
ity to  emulate. 

We  turn  again  to  the  Bible.  No  mind  can  fail  to  be 
deeply  impressed  by  the  fact  there  recorded,  how,  in  con- 
formity with  the  law  that  all  blessings  must  be  purchased 
for  man  by  suffering,  the  Saviour  of  men,  expected  as  a 
conqueror,  came  a  man  of  sorrows,  and  obtained  for  our 
race  its  supreme  blessing  by  His  death. 

The  Bible  teaches  further,  as  has  already  been  observed, 


252  SUFFERING, 

that  personal  suffering  is  the  means  by  which  men  are 
made  willing  to  receive,  or  by  which  they  become  capable 
of  receiving,  in  degree  without  end,  the  boon  of  the  new 
nature  which  has  been  purchased  for  them.  It  declares 
that  the  punishment  of  sin,  its  natural  and  unavoidable 
consequences,  in  every  form  of  suffering,  are  themselves 
the  means  by  which  the  sinful  disposition  is  to  be  de- 
stroyed, by  which  the  defiant  spirit  is  to  be  broken  down. 
Thus  sin  is  made  to  work  its  own  cure.  In  the  parable  of 
the  prodigal  son  it  was  the  starvation  consequent  on  his 
own  excesses  that  drove  the  prodigal  back  to  his  Father's 
open  arms.  So  also  all  growth  in  spiritual  life,  every  step 
of  approach  to  the  nature  of  God,  is  declared  to  be  the 
effect  of  suffering.  "  Perfect  through  suffering,"  heard 
through  the  Bible  as  its  grand  undertone,  swells  at  last 
into  the  overpowering  note  in  which  all  the  harmonies  of 
revelation  become  absorbed. 

Here  again  we  have  the  confirmation  of  human  experi- 
ence. There  is  no  one  who  has  attained  to  any  degree  of 
true  beauty  of  soul,  of  loving  harmony  with  God,  who 
does  not  recognize  suffering  as  having  been  the  principal 
means  by  which  this  change  of  nature  has  been  effected. 
There  is  no  teacher  of  spiritual  truth  who  has  not  learned 
that  suffering  is  the  best,  indeed  obviously  in  many  cases 
the  necessary,  preparative  for  its  reception. 

Suffering  thus  appears,  by  all  testimony,  and  viewed  in 
every  light,  as  the  great  remedial  agency.  It  becomes  im- 
possible to  conceive  of  it  as  constituting  an  end  in  itself, 
as  forming  a  single  exception  to  the  universal  relation 
of  things  to  a  single  end.  It  is  clear  that  the  death  of 
the  Christ  presents  a  case  in  which  suffering  was  not  an 
end  in  itself.  But  in  this  respect  this  is  necessarily  the 
type  of  all  suffering.  If  there  is  a  single  case  in  which  it 
is  certain  that  suffering  was  wholly  a  means  by  which 


SUFFERING.  253 

God  accomplishes  his  remedial  purpose,  then  suffering 
must  be  such  means  in  every  case,  or  the  universe  must 
cease  to  be. 

The  teaching  of  the  Bible,  that  suffering  is  the  means  by 
which  mankind  are  made  capable  of  receiving  the  gift  of 
eternal  life,  or  of  the  Divine  nature,  is  the  belief  of  the 
whole  Christian  church,  up  to  a  certain  point.  Up  to  the 
end  of  this  present  life,  suffering  is  recognized  by  all 
Christians  as  not  constituting  an  end  in  itself,  but  as 
the  crowning  evidence  of  the  love  and  faithfulness  of 
God,  the  means  by  which  he  humbles  the  rebellious  and 
defiant  spirit  of  man,  and  brings  him  into  submission  to 
and  reconciliation  with  himself.  But  it  is  conceived  that 
at  the  instant  of  death  all  this  is  changed,  that  the  soul 
which  passes  this  point  unreconciled  to  God  never  can 
be  reconciled  to  him.  What  is  termed  the  orthodox  be- 
lief is,  that  at  death  suffering  ceases  to  be  remedial  in  its 
nature,  that  it  no  longer  operates  as  a  means  for  the 
attainment  of  the  infinite  good,  but  becomes  thenceforth 
an  end  in  itself.  The  disposition  of  God  toward  the  in- 
dividual is  now  reversed.  Through  all  eternity  he  is  to 
him  a  God  of  wrath  and  vengeance. 

The  doctrine  of  eternal  punishment  is  not  contained 
in  the  Apostles'  Creed.  Of  all  the  views  of  Christianity 
which  have  come  down  to  us,  the  most  spiritual,  and, 
therefore,  presumably,  the  most  correct,  is  that  which  was 
taught  by  Clement  of  Alexandria,  about  the  end  of  the 
second  century,  being  rather  a  development  of  the  gospel 
and  epistles  of  John.  He  taught,  in  a  manner  that  leads 
to  the  belief  that  this  was  the  received  doctrine  of  the 
Eastern  churches,  that  the  work  of  Christ  was  continued 
equally  after  death.  In  the  Roman  Church,  however, 
the  eternal  punishment  of  unbelievers  seems  to  have  been 
a  prominent  doctrine  from  the  earliest  times.  In  these 


254  SUFFERING. 

opposite  views  we  see  the  philosophic  mind  of  the  Greeks, 
and  the  very  different  disposition  of  the  Romans,  not 
capable  of  being  disturbed  by  any  thing  so  unsubstantial 
as  philosophy,  but  whose  minds  habitually  dwelt  upon  law, 
justice,  and  punishment.  The  Athanasian  Creed,  so-called, 
which  originated  in  the  west  of  Europe,  certainly  a  century 
after  the  death  of  Athanasius,  declares  who  shall  without 
doubt  perish  everlastingly  ;  not  those  who  give  no  meat  to 
the  hungry  or  drink  to  the  thirsty  or  clothing  to  the  naked, 
but  those  who  refuse  assent  to  every  syllable  of  that  creed. 
The  doctrine  of  everlasting  fire  became,  what  it  still  con- 
tinues to  be,  the  fundamental  feature  of  that  stupendous 
spiritual  despotism,  the  power  of  the  keys.  It  was  associ- 
ated with  the  imagined  duty,  often  fearfully  exercised,  of 
destroying  unbelievers  in  this  world.  It  is  to  be  observed 
that  the  despotism  is  certainly  quite  as  well  supported  as 
the  doctrine,  by  a  literal  rendering  of  the  words  of  the 
Christ.  The  Reformation  left  this  doctrine  untouched. 
The  dispositions  of  men  did  not  then  regard  this  belief 
with  the  least  aversion.  Eternal  damnation  seemed  to 
the  Protestant  as  appropriate  for  the  unbeliever,  as  it 
seemed  to  the  Romanist  for  the  heretic.  The  amazing 
influence  of  what  is  called  education,  which  in  this,  as 
in  so  many  other  cases,  consists  in  handing  down  and 
rooting  into  the  mind  the  errors  of  ruder  ages,  keeps 
this  belief  alive,  against  the  revolt  of  humanity  and  the 
demonstration  of  philosophy. 

Respecting  the  attitude  of  God  to  man  at  the  instant 
of  death,  there  are  three  possible  conceptions  consistent 
with  the  doctrine  of  eternal  punishment.  Of  these,  the 
first  is,  that  the  purpose  of  God,  to  re-create  in  his  own 
spiritual  image  a  soul  in  which  this  work  had  not  yet 
been  effected,  is  then  abandoned.  The  second  is,  that 


SUFFERING.  255 

God  had  no  purpose  respecting  such  a  soul.  The  third, 
which  is  known  as  Calvinism,  is,  that  God  had  from  all 
eternity  a  purpose  respecting  each  individual  of  our  race  ; 
that  this  eternal  purpose  must  necessarily  be  accom- 
plished, and  that  the  end  reveals  what  this  purpose  was, 
which  is  fulfilled  in  the  eternal  life,  or  in  the  eternal  death, 
of  each  soul ;  that  the  enormously  greater  proportion 
of  mankind  are  the  victims  of  that  purpose,  which  from  all 
eternity  had  consigned  them  to  eternal  suffering  ;  that  "  of 
his  mere  good  pleasure,"  God  elected  some,  including,  of 
course,  the  believers  in  this  doctrine,  to  everlasting  life  ; 
and  that  for  these  alone,  the  elect,  Christ  died. 

Calvinism  was  the  natural  product  of  a  barbarous  age, 
when  men  regarded  the  sufferings  of  their  fellow-beings 
with  little  concern  ;  when  for  centuries  every  Baron  in 
Europe  had  been  a  freebooter,  and  the  Church  was  the 
only  sanctuary  where  they  who  had  no  protector  could 
be  safe ;  when  even  in  England  the  theft  of  an  article  ex- 
ceeding in  value  one  shilling  was  punished  with  death, 
and  when  the  natural  impulse  of  all  religious  zealots,  to 
destroy  those  who  differed  from  them  in  belief,  mani- 
fested itself  whenever  they  possessed  the  power. 

Above  all,  the  knowledge  of  the  uniformity  of  the  con- 
duct of  God,  of  the  universal  and  changeless  character  of 
His  motives  and  purposes,  which  has  been  revealed  to  us, 
was  not  then  possessed,  in  even  the  least  degree.  Nature, 
with  its  priceless  lessons,  was  as  yet  a  sealed  book.  So 
the  philosophic  mind  did  not  exist,  that  could  perceive 
the  absurdity  of  the  Calvinistic  position.  No  one  was 
able  to  affirm  the  impossibility  of  an  exception  to  the  love 
of  God.  No  one  could  then  have  any  idea  of  the  demon- 
stration, declared  through  all  nature,  that  the  Divine  love 
must  of  necessity  be  equal  toward  every  moral  being. 

So  Calvinists  saw  nothing  incredible  in  their  monstrous 


256  SUFFERING. 

doctrine.  They  saw  clearly  enough  that  no  purpose  of 
God  could  ever  be  changed,  that  nothing  could  transpire 
except  in  fulfilment  of  His  eternal  purpose,  and  that  the 
redemption  obtained  by  the  death  of  the  Christ  must  be 
effectual  to  the  full  extent  for  which  it  was  intended. 
But  they  could  not  comprehend  the  universal  nature  of 
the  love  of  God.  Indeed,  their  disposition  was  to  make 
this  love  quite  an  exceptional  thing,  and  to  confine  its 
operation  within  exceedingly  narrow  limits. 

Calvinists  agreed  with  the  Roman  Church,  and  with 
Mohammedanism,  in  arresting  thought  at  the  will.  They 
looked  within  themselves  for  the  criterion  of  truth.  They 
imagined  just  such  a  God  as  one  of  themselves  would  be, 
if  only  he  possessed  the  power.  Their  imaginary  God 
had  merely  to  execute  his  sovereign  will  and  vindicate 
his  glory,  and  this  he  was  supposed  to  do,  just  as  any 
earthly  conqueror  then  would  do,  by  rewarding  his  friends 
and  punishing  his  enemies,  to  the  extent  of  his  ability, 
and  both  with  the  same  complacency. 

The  logic  of  Calvinism  was  impregnable.  "  Unbelievers 
are  at  death  condemned  to  endless  punishment.  All 
things  must  transpire  in  fulfilment  of  the  eternal  purpose 
of  God.  Therefore,  it  was  the  eternal  purpose  of  God 
that  unbelievers  should  be  so  condemned."  This  syllo- 
gism was  so  agreeable  to  their  own  sense  of  justice,  that 
Calvinists  failed  to  see,  what  has  been  so  often  pointed 
out,  that  it  presents  a  perfect  example  of  the  reductio  ad 
absurdum,  in  which  the  falsity  of  the  premise  is  disclosed 
by  the  absurdity  of  the  conclusion. 

Arminianism  is  the  wild  protest  of  humanity  against 
this  terrible  logic.  But  Arminianism  accepts  the  doctrine 
of  eternal  punishment,  and  so  its  protest  is  vain.  The 
eternal  foreordination  of  whatsoever  comes  to  pass  is  in- 
volved in  the  conception  of  an  Infinite  Being.  The  Stoics 


SUFFERING.  2$? 

recognized  this  truth.  "  Out  of  the  universe  from  the 
beginning,"  writes  the  Emperor  Marcus  Aurelius,  "  every- 
thing which  happens  has  been  appointed  and  spun  out 
to  thee."  Thus  far  the  doctrine  of  fatalism  must  be 
accepted.  The  error  of  fatalism  is  on  the  human  side. 
It  is  only  when  fatalism  denies  the  freedom  of  the  will, 
or  the  necessity  of  human  effort,  that  it  becomes  false. 
The  chains  of  Calvinism  were  strongly  forged.  The 
heart  of  humanity  has  swelled  through  its  links,  and 
blossomed  into  songs  of  love  divine.  But  these  links  can 
be  broken  only  by  the  recognition  of  the  truth  of  the 
universal  and  the  changeless  nature  of  the  love  of  God. 

Here  mechanical  science  appears,  to  shed  a  new  light 
upon  the  world  and  upon  the  pages  of  the  verbal  revela- 
tion. It  shows  to  us  the  love  of  God  as  the  primary  law 
of  nature,  and  so,  like  all  the  subordinate  laws  of  nature, 
which  are  modes  of  its  manifestation,  uniform  in  its 
operation.  It  enables  us  to  affirm,  that  if  love  determines 
the  conduct  of  God  toward  a  single  individual  to-day,  it 
must  determine  His  conduct  toward  every  individual  for 
ever.  If  the  Christ  died  to  redeem  one  soul,  then  He 
died  to  redeem  every  soul.  If  the  re-creation  of  one  soul 
in  His  own  spiritual  image  is  the  purpose  of  God,  then 
this  purpose  extends  to  the  whole  race  of  man,  and  all 
the  means  employed  for  effecting  this  purpose  must  con- 
tinue their  cooperative  activity  until  it  is  accomplished. 
The  universe  rests  upon  the  eternal  uniformity  of  the 
conduct  and  motives  of  God. 

When  this  great  truth  is  admitted,  difficulties  disappear 
which  otherwise  are  insurmountable.  The  best  that  be- 
lievers in  the  doctrine  of  eternal  punishment  can  do  is  to 
shut  their  eyes  to  them.  We  see  individuals  continually 
passing  away  from  the  earthly  stage  of  being,  at  every 
age,  and  with  every  conceivable  variety  of  character  and 


258  SUFFERING. 

disposition,  of  inherited  nature,  of  education,  and  of  op- 
portunity. The  doctrine  of  eternal  punishment  draws  a 
hard  and  fast  line,  separating  mankind  at  death  into  two 
classes.  The  Roman  Church  makes  one  of  these  classes 
to  consist  of  those  who  have  been  baptized,  and  if  of 
responsible  age  have  acknowledged  the  Pope  as  the 
vicegerent  of  God,  and  had  their  sins  forgiven  by  a  priest. 
The  Protestant  churches  make  this  class  to  consist  of  all 
who  believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  These  are  exalted 
to  infinite  and  eternal  joy.  The  rest  of  mankind  are  con- 
demned to  everlasting  woe.  At  what  point  does  an  infant 
become  responsible  ?  Why  are  the  heathen  condemned, 
whom  no  priest  ever  appeared  to  baptize,  and  who  never 
heard  of  the  Christ  ?  How  is  the  question  of  responsi- 
bility for  inherited  viciousness  to  be  met?  At  what  point 
is  any  one  to  meet  or  to  fall  short  of  the  only  test  that 
was  ever  laid  down  by  the  Christ :  "  I  was  hungry,  and  ye 
gave  me  meat  "  ?  Obviously  mankind  cannot  be  sepa- 
rated at  death  into  these  two  classes.  The  whole  course 
of  nature  is  at  war  with  such  a  doctrine.  On  any  calm 
consideration  of  it,  death  is  seen  to  be  an  incident  occur- 
ring indifferently  at  all  stages  of  an  uncompleted  process. 
The  only  conception  that  avoids  all  difficulties  is  the  one 
which  accords  with  the  demonstrated  truth,  that  the  eter- 
nal and  changeless  love  of  God  will  after  death  continue 
to  operate  upon  every  soul  according  to  its  needs,  and 
will  bring  it  sooner  or  later  into  the  state  of  everlasting 
joy,  which  consists  in  participation  in  the  Divine  nature. 

This  truth  will  be  denounced  by  many  Christians,  as 
opposed  to  the  plain  teaching  of  the  Bible.  Such  denun- 
ciation is  readily  shown  to  be  unfounded.  Men  always 
have  had,  and  they  always  must  have,  some  general  prin- 
ciple of  interpretation,  which  consciously  or  unconsciously 
they  follow  in  the  study  of  the  Bible.  These  principles 


SUFFERING.  259 

have  been  fixed  in  their  minds  generally  as  the  result  of 
their  education.  They  differ  widely  from  each  other. 

A  recent  Roman  Catholic  writer  exclaims  with  truth : 
"  How  difficult  is  the  understanding  of  the  Bible  ;  how 
far  above  our  comprehension,  and  above  the  reach  of  our 
reason  and  intellect,  are  many  of  its  teachings  and  mys- 
teries !  "  With  this  statement,  thus  presented  in  a  gen- 
eral form,  theologians  of  all  denominations  will  at  once 
agree.  When,  however,  we  come  to  those  expressions  on 
which  the  distinctive  tenets  of  religious  sects  are  founded, 
we  find  these  to  be  regarded  as  exceptions.  Each  sect 
rests  its  peculiar  views  on  what  it  regards  as  "  the  clear 
and  unmistakable  teaching  of  the  Word  of  God."  Each 
is,  however,  generally  alive  to  the  mistaken  or  limited 
nature  of  those  interpretations  on  which  their  fellow 
Christians  of  other  names  rely. 

Thus,  to  the  Roman  Catholic  nothing  appears  more 
clear  than  that  those  words  of  the  Christ,  "  Thou  art 
Peter,  and  upon  this  rock  I  will  build  my  church,"  were  a 
declaration  that  the  Christian  Church  was  to  be  built  on 
Peter  and  his  successors.  The  Protestant  sees  the  symbol, 
"this  rock,"  to  represent  the  great  truth,  which  had  been 
revealed  to  Peter,  and  which  he  had  just  declared,  namely, 
that  Jesus  was  the  expected  Messiah,  "  the  Christ,  the  Son 
of  the  living  God."  This  appears  to  him  its  obvious  and 
necessary  meaning  for  two  reasons.  First,  it  is  evident 
that  this  truth  is  the  rock  on  which  the  Church  of  Christ 
has  been  built ;  and,  second,  this  was  the  established  and 
familiar  meaning  of  this  word  among  the  Jews. 

The  rock  had  been  a  favorite  symbol  with  Moses  and 
David  and  Isaiah,  employed  by  them  always  to  represent 
God  and  the  Messiah.  This  spiritual  use  of  the  word  was 
familiar  to  every  Jew,  was  fixed  in  the  Jewish  mind. 
,The  presumption  that  this  figurative  expression  was  here 

1  "  The  Keys  of  the  Kingdom,"  Rev.  James  J.  Moriarty,  LL.D.,  p.  105. 


260  SUFFERING. 

used  in  its  established  and  familiar  sense,  he  holds  to  be 
such  a  strong  one,  that  it  may  fairly  be  claimed  that  no 
other  supposition  is  possible  to  the  candid  mind.  That 
it  was  so  understood  he  finds  abundantly  proved  in  the 
writings  of  Paul  and  of  Peter  himself. 

To  the  former,  again,  it  seems  plain  that  the  succeeding 
words  of  our  Lord,  "  I  will  give  unto  thee  the  keys  of  the 
kingdom  of  heaven,"  et  seq.,  constituted  Peter  and  his  suc- 
cessors the  representatives  or  vicegerents  of  God  on  the 
earth,  with  full  power  to  admit  their  fellow-men  to,  or  ex- 
clude them  from,  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  The  latter 
looks  on  such  an  interpretation  with  horror,  as  impious 
beyond  degree. 

The  Protestant  view  may  be  expressed  as  follows : 
"  This  sentence  is  a  promise,  inconceivably  blessed  and 
precious,  that  Christ  would  give  to  Peter  the  means  by 
which  he  himself  might  enter  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 
Under  the  singularly  appropriate  figure  of  the  keys  of 
the  kingdom  of  heaven,  Christ  promised  to  Peter  those 
spiritual  gifts,  the  power  to  recognize  His  divinity,  and 
faith  in  Him,  which  should  work  by  love  and  purify  his 
heart,  until  the  kingdom  of  heaven  should  appear  within 
him.  In  this  true  and  spiritual  sense,  the  keys  of  the 
kingdom  of  heaven  are  promised  alike  to  every  believer." 

The  Protestant  contends  that  this  meaning  must  appear 
obvious  to  every  free  inquirer  who  is  familiar  with  the  style 
of  the  Christ,  especially  the  employment  by  Him  always 
of  simple  and  bold  figures  for  conveying  spiritual  ideas. 

In  the  literal  or  jailor  interpretation  adopted  by  the 
Roman  Church  the  Protestant  sees,  behind  the  ambition 
of  its  bishops,  the  influence  of  that  well-known  class  of 
fixed  ideas  which  dominated  the  Roman  mind. 

The  Romanist  attaches  great  weight  to  the  succeeding 
clause  of  this  sentence,  "  and  whatsoever,"  etc.  This,  in- 
deed, seems  at  first  view  most  unmistakably  to  confer 


SUFFERING.  261 

authority.  The  Protestant  recognizes  its  force,  and  holds 
it  to  have  been  the  support  of  the  Roman  claim,  so  that, 
had  the  first  clause  stood  alone,  nothing  could  have  so 
utterly  wrested  it,  as  it  has  been  wrested,  from  its  obvious 
spiritual  meaning.  But  he  calls  attention  to  the  fact  that 
the  power  to  bind  and  loose  was  not  conferred  on  Peter 
only ;  for  the  same  evangelist  relates  the  very  same 
language  to  have  been  addressed  by  our  Lord,  soon 
afterwards,  not  to  Peter  nor  even  to  the  apostles  alone, 
but  to  the  whole  company  of  the  disciples,  as  follows : 
"  Whatsoever  ye  shall  bind  on  earth  shall  be  bound  in 
heaven,  and  whatsoever  ye  shall  loose  on  earth  shall  be 
loosed  in  heaven."  He  claims  that  whatever  power  was 
here  given  was  given  to  every  believer  alike.  There  never 
was  a  more  universal  or  democratic  declaration.  It  as- 
sumes direct  and  equal  relations  between  heaven  and  each 
individual  Christian.  Instead  of  authority  being  con- 
ferred upon  Peter  by  these  words,  in  reality  every  human 
hierarchy  vanishes  before  them. 

As  corroborative  of  .their  view  of  this  passage,  Roman 
Catholics  cite  the  especial  invitation  sent  to  Peter,  as 
recorded  by  Mark,  and  the  especial  commands  given  him 
to  strengthen,  or,  as  rendered  by  them,  to  confirm,  his 
brethren,  and  to  feed  the  sheep  and  lambs  of  Christ. 

Protestants,  on  the  contrary,  see  these  to  have  been 
called  for  by  the  fall  and  subsequent  remorse  of  Peter, 
and  by  his  remarkably  impulsive  temperament.  They  do 
not  recognize  them  as  implying  any  superiority  in  Peter. 
They  point  to  the  facts  that,  although  at  first  appearing  as 
the  prominent  figure  among  the  apostles,  Peter  afterwards 
lost  this  distinction,  and  that  he  never  assumed  superiority, 
nor  was  this  ever  accorded  to  him.  They  deny  that  either 
Peter  himself  or  his  contemporaries  ever  thought  of  such  a 
thing ;  and  they  cite  several  notable  instances,  which  seem  ir- 
reconcilable with  such  a  distinction,  as  conclusive  against  it. 


262  SUFFERING. 

On  the  great  appeal  made  to  the  apostles  and  elders  at 
Jerusalem,  known  as  the  First  Council,  while  Peter  was  pres- 
ent and  made  the  convincing  argument,  the  decision  was 
announced,  in  a  singularly  personal  manner,  by  James,  the 
Lord's  brother,  commencing  as  follows  :  "  Wherefore,  my 
sentence  is,"  etc.;  and  a  letter  was  written  to  the  appellant 
church  conveying  this  decision  in  the  very  same  words. 

The  force  of  this  case  against  the  Roman  Catholic 
claim  may  be  measured  by  conceiving  the  weight  it 
would  have  had  in  its  favor  had  Peter  occupied  the 
position  and  employed  the  language  of  James. 

Again,  when  under  the  great  pressure  exerted  by  the 
Jewish  converts,  who  persisted  in  being  zealous  for  the 
observance  of  the  law  of  Moses,  and  in  maintaining  Jewish 
exclusiveness,  Peter,  whose  temperament  was  especially 
ill  adapted  to  resist  a  long  siege,  had  himself  weakened  on 
a  vital  point,  and  that  the  very  point  on  which  he  would 
be  supposed  to  have  been  especially  strong,  since  the 
truth  concerning  it  had  first  been  miraculously  revealed 
to  him,  Paul  "  withstood  him  to  the  face,  because  he  was 
to  be  blamed." 

Again,  the  church  at  Corinth  became  divided  into  sects, 
or  factions,  one  calling  itself  after  Paul,  one  after  Apollos, 
an  eloquent  preacher,  one  after  Peter.  This  provoked 
from  Paul  a  most  earnest  rebuke.  Setting  the  three  in 
the  same  category,  and  himself  as  the  representative  of 
them  all,  he  demands,  "  Is  Christ  divided  ?  Was  Paul 
crucified  for  you  ;  or  were  ye  baptized  in  the  name  of 
Paul  ?  "  Then,  dropping  Peter,  as  the  least  prominent,  he 
demands,  "  Who  then  is  Paul,  and  who  is  Apollos,  but 
ministers,  by  whom  ye  believed  ?  "  Then,  referring  to 
the  figure  of  the  rock,  he  continues,  "  For  other  founda- 
tion can  no  man  lay  than  is  laid,  which  is  Jesus  Christ." 

Peter  shows  everywhere  that  he  too  understood  this 


SUFFERING.  263 

figure  in  its  true  spiritual  meaning,  especially  when  he 
calls  the  Christ  "  a  living  stone,"  and  "the  chief  corner- 
stone." The  verbalist,  who  insists  that  a  foundation,  or  a 
stone,  is  not  a  rock,  is  met  by  the  quotation  made  by 
Peter,  as  well  as  Paul,  from  Isaiah.  The  prophet  de- 
scribes the  Messiah  as  a  stone  of  stumbling  and  a  rock  of 
offence.  The  apostles  concur  in  applying  these  symbols 
to  the  Christ.  Of  himself  Peter  speaks  humbly,  as  "  a 
servant  and  an  Apostle  of  Jesus  Christ,"  and,  writing 
doubtless  after  his  sixtieth  year,  he  says,  "  The  elders 
who  are  among  you  I  exhort,  who  am  also  an  elder." 

Against  this,  the  Roman  Catholic  declares  that  the 
question  has  been  set  at- rest  by  the  Church,  that  the  posi- 
tion of  Protestants  is  an  unwarranted  exercise  of  private 
judgment,  that  the  authority  to  expound  the  Scriptures 
has  been  committed  to  the  Church,  that  the  Church  has 
declared  the  true  meaning  of  these  passages,  that  no  one 
has  a  right  to  question  its  teaching,  but  the  single  duty 
of  all  men  is  to  accept  its  infallible  interpretation. 

The  Protestant  replies,  that  this  is  a  transparent 
begging  of  the  question,  and  that  the  utter  absurdity  of 
the  interpretation  of  the  Roman  Church,  in  support  of  its 
own  pretensions,  affords  at  once  conclusive  proof,  that  its 
whole  claim  of  authority  to  declare  the  meaning  of  Scrip- 
ture is  a  shameless  imposture  and  usurpation.  Protes- 
tantism thus  becomes,  in  a  large  measure  against  its  will, 
for  most  Protestant  sects  tend  to  enforce  uniformity  of 
belief  among  their  members  in  quite  an  extreme  degree, 
identified  with  the  right  of  private  judgment. 

When  we  look  at  the  matter  carefully,  we  perceive  that 
there  exists  no  middle  ground  between  this  sacred  right  in 
its  absolute  form  on  the  one  hand,  and  absolute  despotism 
on  the  other  ;  or  between  its  free  exercise,  and  the  most  de- 
grading, humiliating,  and  servile  submission  to  authority. 


264  SUFFERING. 

The  latter  involves  the  surrender  of  manhood,  the 
paralysis  of  thought,  and  hopeless  intellectual  and 
spiritual  stagnation.  The  former,  in  spite  of  the  ex- 
cesses committed  in  its  name, — of  the  unguided  and  un- 
bridled license  in  which  some  of  its  champions  indulge, — 
constitutes  the  only  security  of  mankind  against  all  pos- 
sible outrages  of  spiritual  despotism,  presents  the  only 
means  of  escape  from  the  grossly  material  misinterpreta- 
tions of  Scripture  which  to  this  hour  are  the  curse  of 
Christendom,  and  is  the  indispensable  condition  of  spirit- 
ual growth  and  development.  It  is  only  by  the  free  and 
continued  exercise  of  this  inalienable  right,  that  the  mind 
can  arrive  at  the  apprehension  of.  the  purely  and  deeply 
spiritual  significance  of  the  verbal  revelation  as  a  whole, 
and  especially  of  the  figurative  language  employed  by  the 
Christ,  and  that  the  race  of  man  shall  ultimately  reach 
agreement,  on  the  highest  spiritual  plane,  precisely  as,  by 
the  exercise  of  the  same  right,  it  reaches  agreement  re- 
specting physical  truth. 

But  what  is  to  be  the  guide,  which  mankind,  in  the 
free  activity  of  its  thought,  shall  follow,  in  order  that  it 
shall  at  last  reach  this  goal,  of  what  present  appearances 
would  lead  us  to  regard  as  an  impossible  unity?  The 
whole  aim  of  this  book  has  been  to  give  an  answer  to  this 
question.  Man  will  find  this  guide  everywhere,  except 
within  himself,  the  place  where  he  seems  so  persistently 
disposed  to  look  for  it.  It  is  a  remarkable  fact,  that  me- 
chanical science  furnishes  the  only  principles  of  interpre- 
tation of  the  Bible,  as  well  as  the  only  conception  of  the 
nature  of  God,  which  men  have  not  drawn  from  human 
analogies,  which  they  have  not  looked  for  within  them- 
selves, and  found  in  contemplating  their  own  dispositions. 
The  protest  of  God,  "  Thou  thoughtest  that  I  was  alto- 
gether as  thyself,"  "  My  thoughts  are  not  your  thoughts, 


SUFFERING.  26$ 

neither  are  your  ways  my  ways,  for  as  the  heavens  are 
higher  than  the  earth  so  are  my  ways  higher  than  your 
ways,  and  my  thoughts  than  your  thoughts,"  fell  upon 
dead  ears. 

In  fact,  until  the  study  of  the  truth  and  love  of  God 
and  the  changeless  nature  of  the  divine  purposes  and  con- 
duct, as  revealed  in  nature,  had  made  sufficient  progress  to 
furnish  true  guiding  principles  to  the  study  of  the  verbal' 
revelation,  men  were  necessarily  shut  up  to  themselves. 
Reference  has  already  been  made  to  the  very  serious  dis- 
advantages in  this  respect  under  which  those  men  labored 
who  in  various  ages  have  assumed  to  formulate  creeds, 
which  have  been  handed  down  to  us,  and  have  been  made 
in  a  large  degree  to  take  the  place  of  the  Bible.  What 
could  they  know  of  the  infinite  meaning  contained  in  the 
words,  "  I  am  the  Lord,  I  change  not !  "  How  could 
they  help  limiting,  as  far  as  possible,  language  so  utterly 
beyond  their  comprehension  as  this  :  "  I  have  sworn  by 
myself,  the  word  is  gone  out  of  my  mouth  in  righteous- 
ness, and  shall  not  return,  That  unto  me  every  knee 
shall  bow,  every  tongue  shall  swear." 

It  does  seem  strange,  though,  that  they  could  so  com- 
pletely overlook  the  comprehensiveness  of  the  cry  of 
John  :  "  Behold  the  Lamb  of  God,  which  taketh  away  the 
sin  of  the  world."  In  their  endlessly  refined  speculations, 
concerning  God  and  man,  and  their  relations,  it  is  to  be 
observed  that  they  paid  but  little  regard  to  any  thing 
beyond  the  will.  Their  entire  conceptions  were  limited 
also  by  an  exclusive  disposition,  which  they  had  uncon- 
sciously copied  from  the  Jews.  The  revelation  of  the 
infinite  and  uniform  love  of  God  which  is  made  to  us  in 
nature  has  indeed  been  needed. 

Attention  is  earnestly  called  to  the  fact,  that  the  Bible 
has  been  interpreted  under  the  influence  of  fixed  ideas  of 


266  SUFFERING. 

a  narrow  and  earthly  nature,  which  humanity  and  science 
are  showing  to  be  unfounded,  and  not  only  in  ignorance 
of,  but  without  the  capacity  to  receive,  the  sublime  truths 
which  form  the  guide  to  its  correct  understanding.  Under 
these  limiting  conditions,  it  was  a  matter  of  necessity  for 
our  ancestors  to  pass  by,  as  beyond  their  comprehension, 
those  expressions  which  present  eternal  truth  in  its  ever- 
lasting form,  and  to  fix  their  attention  instead  on  those 
expressions  in  which  the  truth  is  adapted  to  the  reception 
of  ignorant  minds,  to  read  figurative  language  literally, 
and  to  find  interpretations  which  were  within  their  com- 
prehension, and  would  conform  to  their  habits  of  thought. 

They  read,  for  example,  the  absolute  declaration  of  the 
supreme  truth,  with  which  the  whole  creation  is  vocal, 
"God  is  love."  It  made  the  same  impression  on  their 
minds  that  the  statement  of  any  thing  beyond  its  compre- 
hension makes  on  the  mind  of  a  child.  They  read  :  "  God 
so  loved  the  world''  and,  horribile  dictu,  instead  of  this 
they  could  write  and  teach  :  "  God,  having  out  of  his  mere 
good  pleasure,  from  all  eternity,  elected  some  to  everlast- 
ing life,  did  enter  into  a  covenant  of  grace  with  them" 
They  read :  "  For  as  in  Adam  all  die,  even  so  in  Christ 
shall  all  be  made  alive."  This  of  course  could  not  be  so. 
St.  Paul  never  could  have  meant  that.  So  after  the  word 
"  all,"  in  the  last  clause,  Romanists  understand  "  the  bap- 
tized," Calvinists  understand  "  the  elect,"  and  Arminians 
understand  "  believers  in  this  life,"  to  be  inserted.  Mean- 
time there  stands  the  invitation,  which  in  the  nature 
of  things  must  be  without  end,  "Whosoever  will,  let  him 
come." 

But,  it  will  still  be  demanded  by  Calvinists,  are  not 
the  doctrines  of  election  and  of  eternal  punishment  ab- 
solutely taught  in  the  Bible  ?  No,  a  thousand  times,  no. 
The  early  believers  in  Christ  were  the  elect,  in  the  same 


SUFFERING.  267 

sense  in  which  the  Jews  were  the  chosen  people  of  God, 
and  for  a  similar  high  purpose  ;  that  as  through  the  Jews 
the  knowledge  and  worship  of  God  had  been  preserved 
on  the  earth,  and  a  Saviour  had  been  given  to  men,  so 
through  the  first  believers  in  Christ  the  glad  tidings  of 
His  redeeming  work  should  be  carried  into  all  the  world, 
and  proclaimed  to  every  creature.  To  give  to  the  term 
'  the  elect  "  any  further  force  than  this  is  wholly  gratui- 
tous and  unwarranted,  and  is  opposed  to  established 
canons  of  interpretation  and  construction.  It  was  natural 
that  the  Christians,  especially  the  Roman  Christians, 
who  were  mostly  slaves,  should  be  forcibly  reminded  by 
their  teachers  of  their  exalted  condition.  What  else 
could  kindle  their  enthusiasm  as  would  the  declaration 
of  the  fact,  that  before  time  began  they  had  been  or- 
dained to  a  glory  that  would  only  have  had  its  com- 
mencement when  time  should  end  !  But  what  warrant 
does  this  afford  for  the  doctrine,  at  which  all  nature 
shudders,  that  Christ  died  only  for  the  elect  ? 

So  with  the  doctrine  of  eternal  punishment.  It  is  clear 
that  all  the  words  of  the  Christ  are  to  be  considered 
together.  Many  of  His  figurative  expressions  and  para- 
bles have  been  distorted  in  their  interpretation,  to  make 
them  sustain  this  doctrine.  When  this  doctrine  has  been 
abandoned,  the  true  meaning  of  these  passages  will  ap- 
pear. The  latter  part  of  the  twenty-fifth  chapter  of  St. 
Matthew  is  mainly  relied  upon  to  sustain  the  doctrine  of 
eternal  punishment.  Now  it  is  a  singular  fact,  that  there 
is  not  a  Christian  church  of  any  name  which  employs  the 
test  there  given  by  the  Christ.  Advocates  of  eternal 
punishment  take  the  startling  imagery  of  that  wonderful 
description,  and  give  to  it  a  literal  meaning,  because  it 
thus  answers  their  purpose,  and  there  they  stop.  We 
have  lately  seen  the  difficulty  the  Protestants  have  had 


268  SUFFERING. 

in  reviving  this  neglected  test  for  the  benefit  of  Sir  Moses 
Montefiore.  Romanists  had  no  trouble  about  him.  They 
would  have  burned  him  here  if  they  could.1 

All  the  tremendous  figures  of  speech  employed  by  the 
Christ  are  abundantly  satisfied  by  the  suffering  through 
which  alone  it  is  possible  for  hardened  and  depraved 
natures  after  death  to  become  transformed  into  the  image 
of  infinite  love. 

On  the  other  hand,  there  stand  two  declarations  of  the 
Christ,  which  are  hopelessly  irreconcilable  with  the  doc- 
trine of  eternal  punishment.  The  first  of  these  is  :  "  He 
that  knew  not,  and  did  things  worthy  of  stripes,  shall  be 
beaten  with  few."  The  Calvinists  were  nothing  if  not 
logical.  What  could  have  blinded  their  eyes  to  the  mean- 
ing of  this  passage?  How  was  it  that  they  did  not 
perceive  that  if  a  single  sinner  was  to  be  beaten  with  few 
stripes,  the  whole  doctrine  of  endless  punishment  must 
fall  to  the  ground  ? 

The  second  declaration  is,  if  possible,  still  more  conclu- 
sive: "Whosoever  speaketh  against  the  Holy  Ghost,  it 
shall  not  be  forgiven  him,  neither  in  this  world,  neither  in 
the  world  to  come."  Here  a  single  possible  exception  is 
declared  to  forgiveness  in  the  world  to  come.  It  is  an 
impressive  fact  that,  amid  all  forms  of  blasphemy  among 
men,  blasphemy  against  the  Holy  Ghost  is  never  heard. 
St.  Peter,  who  is  claimed  to  be  the  head  of  the  Roman 
Church,  did  not  himself  believe  the  doctrine  of  eternal 
punishment,  for  he  writes  that  Christ  "  went  and  preached 
to  the  spirits  in  prison." 

The  fact  is,  in  mechanical  science  we  have  a  new  reve- 
lation. Eternally  old,  indeed,  but  new  to  us,  who  are 
only  just  awakening  to  realize  its  character  and  value. 

1  Our  ears  are  tingling  yet  from  the  out  and  out  defence  of  the  Inquisition, 
to  which  Monsignor  Capel  has  lately  compelled  us  to  listen. 


SUFFERING.  269 

Minds  which  have  been  trained  to  the  habit  and  the 
precision  of  scientific  thought,  and  which,  emancipated 
from  bondage  to  authority,  demand  the  same  criterion 
and  verification  of  religious  as  of  scientific  truth,  cannot 
give  assent  to  any  article  of  belief,  that  is  not  in  harmony 
with  truth,  as  it  stands  revealed  in  nature.  This  difficulty 
has  been  forcibly  presented  by  Prof.  Drummond.  "  The 
great  exception,"  on  which  he  dwells,  is  not  the  religion 
of  Christ,  but  the  profane  intrusion  here  of  human  au- 
thority, elsewhere  unknown.  This,  he  rightly  observes, 
is  for  children.  Faith  can  rest  on  it  no  longer. 

In  the  harmony  between  Christianity  and  nature,  which 
these  papers  are  an  humble  attempt  to  present,  a  class  of 
truths  and  mode  of  argument  appear,  to  which  little  atten- 
tion has  as  yet  been  given  by  theologians.  But  these  are 
the  truths  and  the  arguments  which  shall  underlie  the 
belief  of  future  generations. 

In  its  study  of  nature,  the  mind  has  had  its  perceptions 
developed  in  the  following  order :  First,  there  has  been 
merely  the  perception  of  isolated  appearances.  To  this 
has  been  added,  second,  the  perception  of  force,  as  the 
cause  of  phenomena;  third,  the  perception  of  the  eternal 
constancy  of  the  action  of  force,  and  the  harmony  which 
exists  between  the  various  modes  of  its  manifestation ; 
fourth,  the  perception  of  the  essential  nature  of  force,  in 
all  its  manifestations,  as  the  energizing  of  the  unchange- 
able and  infinitely  omnipresent  God;  and,  finally,  the  per- 
ception of  love,  as  the  motive  to  all  the  conduct  of  God. 

This  last,  when  reached  by  any  mind,  becomes  to  that 
mind  the  most  certain,  as  it  is  the  most  spiritual,  of 
human  cognitions.  True  religion,  as  well  as  civilization 
which  is  capable  of  enduring,  must  rest  upon  this  funda- 
mental and  ultimate  truth.  The  Bible  has  anticipated 
this  sublime  conclusion,  or  penetration  into  nature.  There- 
fore the  Bible  is  the  revelation  of  God. 


2/O  SUFFERING. 

By  the  same  standard  must  be  tried,  also,  the  concep- 
tion of  the  divine  nature  and  conduct,  which  our  imperfect 
minds  have  formed  out  of  the  Bible.  And  O  how  in- 
adequate, how  human,  how  wrong  as  a  whole,  this  con- 
ception is  found  to  be !  How  our  feeble  recognition  has 
limited  the  love  of  God,  and  the  redeeming  work  of  Christ, 
both  which  must  be  alike  infinite. 

The  present  phase  of  the  spiritual  growth  of  the  race  is 
well  exhibited  in  the  prevalent  conceptions  regarding  the 
Deity,  which  are  in  some  respects  vague,  and  in  others 
contradictory.  From  the  sublime  truth  of  the  Divine 
Immanency  the  religious  mind  seems  to  shrink,  and  to 
insist  on  confounding  it  with  pantheism.  Instead  of  His 
indwelling — of  His  infinite  omnipresence, — the  imagined 
relation  of  God  to  the  creation  seems  to  have  remoteness 
as  its  primary  feature.  From  without,  God  is  conceived  as 
contemplating,  or  at  the  most  ordering  and  directing,  the 
universe,  which  He  has  finished  and  set  in  motion.  On  this 
rest  the  fictions  of  second  causes  and  special  providences. 

Nature,  interpreted  by  science,  offers  its  help  toward 
forming  the  true  idea  of  God.  Theology  disregards  this 
aid.  Far  from  seeking  for  a  consistent  conception  of  the 
Divine  Being,  it  draws  from  the  unformity  of  action  in 
nature  the  idea  of  a  pitiless,  relentless,  inexorable  Deity, 
the  very  opposite  of  the  God  who  "  so  loved  the  world," 
and  employs  this  uniformity  to  symbolize  its  conception 
of  justice  without  mercy. 

In  the  Divine  nature,  love  and  justice  are  conceived  as 
antagonistic  and  irreconcilable.  From  this  predicament 
there  is  absolutely  no  escape,  so  long  as  suffering,  the 
penalty  for  sin,  is  held  to  be  a  final  end  in  itself,  a  satisfac- 
tion of  the  stern  demands  of  justice  ;  and  not,  what  it 
clearly  is,  the  ultimate  means  which  God,  who  is  love, 
employs  to  destroy  sinful  propensities,  and  re-create  the 
soul  of  man  in  His  own  moral  image. 


SUFFERING.  2/1 

These  ideas  of  the  Deity  are  obviously  immature. 
Revelation  of  spiritual  truth,  as  of  all  other  truth,  must 
be  gradual,  as  the  mind  grows  to  the  capacity  for  its 
reception.  We  may  see  this  growth  in  the  power  of 
spiritual  apprehension  going  on  before  our  eyes. 

My  friend,  Rev.  James  Douglas,  D.D.,  has  called  my 
attention  to  the  fact,  which  is  obvious  when  once  pointed 
out,  that  the  so-termed  orthodox  interpretation  of  the 
imagery,  under  which  the  Christ  has  represented  the  state 
of  the  impenitent  after  death,  is  the  opposite  of  the  true. 
For  example,  it  is  not  long  since  the  belief  was  held 
universally  among  Christians  that  the  wicked  were  con- 
signed to  a  hell  of  actual  fire  and  brimstone.  Even 
Milton,  with  all  his  mighty  spirituality,  never  rose  above 
this  conception.  Such  is  the  thraldom  of  literalism, 
which  has  not  by  any  means  been  limited  to  the  Church 
of  Rome. 

Now,  however,  through  some  insensible  process  of  illu- 
mination, we  are  coming  to  see  more  clearly,  and  at  the 
present  day  this  language  is  generally  regarded  as  sym- 
bolical. But,  symbolical  of  what  ?  Why  were  these 
figures  employed  by  the  Christ  ?  The  question  admits  of 
but  one  answer.  It  was  because  fire  is  the  supreme  and 
final  purifying  agent,  and  brimstone  was  then  in  universal 
use  for  bleaching.  This  meaning  is  confirmed  by  the 
language  of  the  last  of  the  prophets,  who  declared  con- 
cerning the  Messiah,  "  he  is  like  a  refiner's  fire  and  like 
fuller's  soap,  and  he  shall  sit  as  a  refiner  and  purifier  of 
silver,"  who,  we  know,  does  not  permit  the  fire  to  be 
quenched  while  any  thing  remains  to  be  burned, — until  the 
last  dross  has  disappeared,  and  he  sees  his  own  image  per- 
fectly reflected  in  the  purified  metal. 

One  who  has  received  the  revelation  of  the  changeless 
nature  of  the  love  of  God,  and  the  uniformity  of  its  opera- 
tion, would  be  sorely  puzzled  if  he  should  attempt  to 


2/2  SUFFERING. 

limit  his  view  to  that  which  transpires  in  this  life,  and  so 
comes  within  the  range  of  our  present  observation.  It  is 
obvious  that  suffering  is,  in  reality,  what  it  is  declared  in 
the  Bible  to  be,  the  finally  efficient  remedial  or  re-creative 
agency,  through  the  operation  of  which  the  human  shall 
become  like  to  the  divine  nature.  But  thus  far  in  the 
history  of  the  world,  upon  mankind  as  a  whole,  this 
beneficent  effect  of  suffering  has  scarcely  begun  to  be  felt. 
Here  lies  a  difficulty  beyond  the  power  of  man  to  solve. 

The  teaching  of  the  Christ  removes  this  difficulty. 
Through  -mighty  figures  of  speech,  and  in  forms  adapted 
to  impress  it  most  deeply  upon  human  minds,  the  revela- 
tion is  here  made  of  that  truth  which  satisfies  our  want. 
We  are  shown  in  the  life  to  come  the  continued  and  in- 
tensified operation  of  suffering,  as  this  shall  be  demanded 
for  the  cure  of  each  individual  soul,  and  also  that  "  it  is 
not  the  will  of  your  Father  which  is  in  heaven,  that  one 
of  these  little  ones  should  perish." 

When  this  revelation,  so  utterly  beyond  human  pene- 
tration to  have  reached,  has  once  been  given,  we  perceive 
that  it  must  be  true.  It  is  precisely  what  the  case  de- 
mands, and  what  an  intelligence  sufficiently  comprehensive 
would  have  looked  for. 

The  key  to  the  correct  understanding  of  this  revelation 
of  the  Christ,  and  which  reconciles  all  apparent  inconsist- 
encies, is  found  in  the  truth,  that  suffering,  being  reme- 
dial in  its  nature,  must  continue  to  be  remedial  forever. 

This  truth  was  assumed  by  the  early  Alexandrine 
Fathers.  They  taught  that  discipline  and  reformation 
were  the  only  ends  of  punishment,  therefore  it  could  not 
be  eternal ;  and  that  the  final  end  is  the  entire  freedom 
from  evil.1  They,  however,  could  not  have  had  the  full 

1  Neander  :  "  History  of  Christian  Dogmas,"  p.  254.  See  Isaiah,  xlv., 
23  ;  quoted  twice  by  St.  Paul,  Rom.,  xiv.,  n,  and  Phil.,  ii.,  10  ;  and  in 
the  latter  case  amplified  in  a  remarkable  manner. 


SUFFERING.  2?$ 

and  clear  demonstration  of  the  necessary  nature  of  this 
truth,  which  is  given  to  us. 

We  no  longer  need  to  shut  our  eyes  to  the  infinite 
meaning  of  the  refrain  which  runs  through  the  Hebrew 
psalmody,  "whose  mercy  endureth  forever."  "  The  wrath 
of  God,"  "  the  wrath  to  come,"  and  similar  forms  of  speech, 
are  now  read  in  their  true  sense,  as  expressing,  not  that 
impossible  thing,  a  change  in  the  divine  disposition,  but 
the  mode  in  which,  under  sinful  conditions,  infinite  love 
must  manifest  itself  for  the  accomplishment  of  its  benefi- 
cent purpose.  The  eternal  separation  of  the  evil  from 
the  good  is  now  apprehended  as  a  necessity  existing  in 
the  nature  of  things,  and  entirely  consistent  with  the 
change  of  every  human  being  from  evil  to  good.  This 
revelation,  obviously,  could  have  come  only  from  the  in- 
finite Revealer  of  all  things.  It  harmonizes  with  all  the 
other  teachings  of  the  Christ,  in  showing  Him  to  have  been 
divine. 

It  is  remarkable  that  the  revelations  of  science  should 
carry  us  back  to  the  truth  as  taught  by  the  earliest  unin- 
spired teacher  whose  writings  have  come  down  to  us, 
Clement  of  Alexandria.  He  taught  the  divine  immanence 
in  its  deep  and  spiritual  reality, — in  a  sense  in  which  the 
Church  has  almost  ever  since  been,  and  still  is  for  the 
most  part,  dead  to  this  profound  and  precious  truth.  He 
taught,  moreover,  that  "  we  can  set  no  limits  to  the 
agency  of  the  Redeemer ;  to  redeem,  to  rescue,  to  dis- 
cipline is  his  work,  and  so  will  He  continue  to  operate 
after  this  life." ' 

To  the  careful  observer  it  is  evident  that,  at  the  present 
time,  religious  thought  and  belief,  so  far  as  respects  the 
nature  of  God  and  the  eternal  destiny  of  man,  are  passing 
through  a  transition  stage  ;  which  is  marked  by  those  in- 

1  Stromata,  vi.,  ch.  6. 


2/4  SUFFERING. 

consistencies  necessarily  incident  to  such  a  period,  and 
which  arise  out  of  the  unequal  progress  made  along  the 
different  lines  of  advance  from  error  to  truth. 

The  mediseval  belief  on  these  subjects  was  consistent 
with  itself.  It  was  utterly  wrong,  but  it  was  coherent. 
Christians  had  not  by  any  means  outgrown  the  influence 
of  demon  worship,  of  dread  of  a  power  which  must  be 
appeased.  Consequently  the  prevalent  conception  of  the 
Infinite  Father  in  heaven  was  that  of  a  God  of  wrath. 
Hatred  of  sin  was  conceived  to  be  His  supreme  emotion, 
and  the  punishment  of  sin  His  eternal  employment.  Mercy 
and  love,  pity  and  compassion,  had  their  existence  in  a 
totally  distinct  Being,  the  Son.  Through  His  intercession 
the  divine  wrath  was  averted  in  the  case  of  the  individual 
suppliant.  A  curious  word  is  this  word  "  averted."  The 
inexhaustible  vials  of  divine  vengeance  continued  to  pouj 
out  their  eternal  flood,  but  over  the  head  of  the  baptized 
or  the  penitent  there  was  interposed  something  in  the 
nature  of  an  umbrella.  The  unbaptized  or  the  impeni- 
tent remained  exposed  to  the  pitiless  storm  forever. 

This  belief  was  horrible,  but  it  was  consistent.  It  was 
all  horrible  alike.  For  such  an  imaginary  Being  punish- 
ment was  fitly  conceived  of  as  constituting  an  end  in  it- 
self. Such  an  imaginary  Being  would  be  satisfied  by  the 
eternal  torment  of  rebels  against  His  authority,  would 
have  no  purpose  beyond  this  vindication  of  the  claims  of 
eternal  justice. 

This  was  theology  as  it  survived  to  the  time  of  Milton. 
Thus  it  stands  embalmed  in  his  immortal  verse,  the  influ- 
ence of  which  has  contributed  largely  to  its  perpetuation 
among  Protestants,  in  the  various  and  somewhat  vague 
degrees  in  which  it  is  still  held  by  them. 

But  "  light  is  come,  and  the  glory  of  the  Lord  is  risen 
upon "  us.  In  the  progress  of  spiritual  enlightenment, 


SUFFERING.  275 

through  the  exercise  of  free  thought,  we  are  enabled  to 
form  the  true  conception  of  the  infinitely  blessed  God, 
and  this  is  the  absolute  and  extreme  opposite  of  the 
mediaeval  conception.  God  is  love,  just  as  the  Bible 
always  declared  Him  to  be.  Every  divine  act  is  the  ex- 
pression of  infinite  love.  The  purpose  of  God  respecting 
every  human  being  is  one  purpose,  that  he  shall  be  a 
partaker  of  His  own  holy  nature.  That  purpose  can 
never  fail.  His  transforming  work  is  not  limited  to  this 
life.  "  One  day  is  with  the  Lord  as  a  thousand  years, 
and  a  thousand  years  as  one  day."  Suffering  is  the  mode 
in  which  His  love  must  express  itself  to  the  sinner,  and 
the  ultimate  means  by  which  His  purposes  of  grace  and 
mercy  shall  be  accomplished.  Far  from  constituting  an 
end  in  itself,  it  conduces  directly  to  the  single  glorious  end 
which  only  such  a  Being  can  contemplate. 

This  conception  of  God,  although  true  so  far  as  we  can 
form  it  at  all,  must  of  necessity  be  extremely  feeble.  How 
could  our  sight  endure  the  full  blaze  of  the  glory  of  infinite 
love !  This  conception  of  the  nature  of  God  will  grow 
more  distinct,  as  the  clouds  of  human  analogies  become 
dissipated,  and  men  learn,  not  so  much  where  to  look,  as 
where  not  to  look,  for  help  in  forming  it,  and,  above  all, 
as  they  themselves  become  more  lovely. 

The  corresponding  change  in  belief  respecting  the  dura- 
tion of  future  punishment  must  necessarily  follow,  or 
rather  must  attend,  this  change  in  the  conception  of  the 
divine  nature.  These  are,  indeed,  so  intimately  connected, 
that  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  this  change  of  belief 
has  already  taken  place  in  a  far  greater  degree  among 
Protestant  Christians  than  yet  appears  on  the  surface.  It 
must  soon  burst  the  ecclesiastical  cerements  in  which  it  is 
now  bound. 


FAITH. 


WE  have  now  arrived  at  the  solid  ground  of  faith,  in  the 
perception  and  acceptance  of  the  sublime  truth,  of  the  in- 
finite and  universal  love  of  God,  and  the  recognition  of 
the  modes  of  its  uniform  and  ceaseless  activity.  As  re- 
vealed in  nature,  the  love  of  God  is  without  limit,  or  pref- 
erence, or  change.  From  the  impressive  teachings  of  me- 
chanical science  we  derive  all  our  knowledge  and  form  all 
our  conceptions  of  the  changeless  nature  of  the  Divine 
conduct.  In  unvarying  uniformity  of  action,  this  science 
discloses  a  fundamental  law,  which  we  at  once  see  must 
be  common  both  to  the  physical  and  the  spiritual  worlds ; 
or,  in  other  words,  must  determine  all  the  conduct  of  God. 
The  importance  of  the  service  thus  rendered  by  mechani- 
cal science  cannot  be  adequately  realized.  A  God  who 
was  not  seen  to  be  "  without  variableness,"  upon  whose 
brightness  the  possibility  of  turning  could  cast  a  shadow, 
such  an  imaginary  God  could  not  be  the  object  or  the  in- 
spirer  of  faith.  As  observed  in  the  preceding  paper,  the 
whole  Bible  must  be  read  in  the  light  of  this  revelation. 

We  must  not  overlook  here  a  fact,  which  has  already 
been  alluded  to,  and  of  which  we  have  now  a  prominent 
example  before  us,  and  that  is,  the  pervasive  nature  of 
mechanical  science.  Upon  this  greatest  of  all  subjects, 
the  Divine  nature  and  conduct,  this  science  is  undoubt- 
edly at  the  present  day  contributing  most  largely  to 

276 


FAITH.  277 

emancipate  the  human  mind  from  bondage  to  tradition- 
ary authority,  and  to  form  correct  methods  of  thought, 
even  when  men  are  entirely  unconscious  of  the  influence 
to  which  they  are  indebted. 

The  reception  of  these  truths,  of  the  universal  and  the 
unvarying  nature  of  the  love  of  God,  seems  to  have  been, 
and  even  yet  to  be,  the  most  difficult  of  all  things  for 
mankind  to  become  capable  of.  It  involves  a  radical 
change  in  the  dispositions  of  men,  a  change  that  appa- 
rently could  be  effected  only  in  a  manner  almost  incon- 
ceivably gradual.  This  change,  not  less  in  its  nature 
than  in  the  long  period  required  for  its  accomplishment, 
suggests  the  process  in  operation  through  geologic  time, 
by  which  the  void  world  of  fire  and  rock  became  trans- 
formed into  the  fertile  earth  clad  in  verdure  and  teeming 
with  life,  and  the  darkness  produced  by  the  boiling  and 
down-pour  of  oceans  gave  place  to  the  glory  of  the  re- 
vealed heavens  and  the  changing  beauty  of  the  skies. 

The  small  portion  of  the  human  family,  in  whose  minds, 
as  the  result  of  a  long  series  of  teachings  and  judgments, 
the  truth  of  one  personal  unseen  God  had  finally  become 
fixed,  secure  against  the  assaults  of  idolatry,  held,  with 
a  degree  of  fanaticism  now  difficult  to  be  imagined,  to  the 
belief  that  this  God  was  theirs  alone,  to  the  exclusion  of 
the  rest  of  mankind.  The  numerous  distinct  declarations 
to  the  contrary  in  their  own  sacred  writings  had  no  power 
to  shake  this  conceit.  The  first  recorded  teaching  of  the 
Christ  was  directed  against  it.  This  teaching  consisted 
only  in  the  recital  of  two  familiar  events  in  the  Jewish 
history.  But,  for  the  very  reason  that  the  obvious  deduc- 
tion from  these  events,  that  the  love  of  God  extended 
equally  to  the  Gentiles,  could  not  be  avoided,  the  refer- 
ence to  them  by  the  Christ  exasperated  His  hearers  to 
such  a  frenzy,  that  they  dragged  Him  to  the  brow  of  the 


278  FAITH. 

hill  on  which  their  city  was  built,  to  cast  Him  down  head- 
long. 

In  its  inception,  the  Christian  Church  was  composed  al- 
most entirely  of  Jews.  The  converts  to  Christianity  gave 
up  their  dream  of  the  temporal  dominion  of  their  race,  and 
accepted  the  Christ  as  a  King  whose  kingdom  was  not  of 
this  world  ;  but  that  the  good  tidings  of  great  joy  should 
be  to  all  people,  that  was  more  than  Jewish  jealousy  could 
endure.  So,  as  the  gospel  spread  among  the  Gentiles,  the 
Jews  became  united  in  rejecting  it.  Since  then  they  have 
listened,  in  their  synagogues  every  Sabbath  day,  to  the 
reading  of  the  Scriptures,  in  which  are  contained  such  ex- 
pressions as  this :  "  It  is  a  light  thing  that  thou  shouldest 
be  my  servant,  to  raise  up  the  tribes  of  Jacob,  and  to  re- 
store the  preserved  of  Israel ;  I  will  also  give  thee  for  a 
light  to  the  Gentiles,  that  thou  mayest  be  my  salvation 
unto  the  end  of  the  earth  ";  and  they  have  waited,  all  the 
same,  through  nineteen  centuries,  and  are  waiting  still,  for 
their  exclusive  Messiah,  who  shall  restore  the  kingdom  to 
Israel. 

The  taming  of  human  ferocity,  and  the  weakening  of 
the  spirit  of  exclusiveness,  neither  of  which  were  by  any 
means  confined  to  the  Jewish  race,  have  advanced  by  such 
gradual  steps,  that  their  progress  can  be  observed  only  by 
comparing  the  states  of  society  at  periods  separated  by 
long  intervals  of  time ;  and  often  it  has  seemed  as  if  hu- 
manity had  actually  retrograded.  In  the  belief  of  the 
Church  of  the  middle  ages  the  unbaptized  came  to  take 
the  place,  that  in  the  Jewish  mind  was  held  by  the  uncir- 
cumcised,  of  the  hated  of  God.  So  lately  as  the  sixteenth 
century,  William  of  Orange  was,  perhaps,  the  only  man  in 
Europe,  who  seemed  to  realize  that  it  was  not  the  duty  of 
the  dominant  religious  sect,  whatever  that  sect  might  be, 
to  use  its  power  for  the  punishment  of  disbelievers  in  its 


FAITH.  279 

creed.  The  best  of  men  have  in  their  turns  exercised  the 
very  intolerance  against  which  their  own  lives  were  a  pro- 
test. They  knew  not  what  manner  of  spirit  they  were  of. 
But  it  was  the  spirit  of  their  age.  This  fact  ought  to  be 
taken  into  consideration  in  judging  of  their  conduct.  We 
have  no  right  to  arraign  them  for  having  fallen  short  of 
our  standard.  Future  generations  will  have  quite  as  much 
reason  to  arraign  us  for  having  fallen  short  of  theirs. 

Respecting  the  present  development  of  Christianity,  the 
following  thoughts  are  suggested  :  First,  confining  our 
view  to  the  Pro'testant  Church,  we  observe  that,  while  in- 
tolerance seems  to  have  pretty  nearly  expired,  the  spirit 
of  exclusiveness  still  survives.  We  recognize  the  same  old 
exclusive  disposition  in  modified  forms  of  expression,  al- 
though it  is  evident  that  this  disposition  also  is  feeling 
largely  the  influence  of  more  enlightened  thought. 

This  exclusive  disposition  appears,  not  merely  in  secta- 
rianism, but  in  the  childish  refusal  of  great  bodies  of  Chris- 
tians to  commune  with  one  another,  which  is  harmless 
enough,  but  for  the  spirit  that  it  perpetuates,  and  the  un- 
christian exhibition  that  it  makes.  This  disposition  ap- 
pears, feeble  and  ludicrous,  in  "  the  uncovenanted  mercies  " 
which  used,  more  commonly  than  they  now  are,  to  be 
vouchsafed  by  the  charity  of  the  churchmen  to  those  out- 
side their  fold.  It  appears  in  a  much  more  serious  form 
among  those  who  still  retain  the  Calvinistic  doctrine  of  a 
limited  atonement,  and  insist  upon  giving  an  utter  perver- 
sion of  meaning  to  the  doctrine  of  election.  This  fearful 
interpretation  of  Scripture  we  have  already  seen  to  have 
been  more  grateful  to  the  age  from  which  it  has  been 
inherited  than  it  is  to  ours.  In  the  repetition  by  "  the 
elect,"  in  ancient  and  more  especially  in  modern  times,  of 
the  absurd  conceit  of  the  Jews,  we  have  exhibited  the  ten- 
dency of  poor  human  nature  to  manifest  the  same  weak- 


280  FAITH. 

ness  under  similar  conditions.  A  careful  reading  of  the 
Bible  will  show  that  similar  narrow  and  literal  interpreta- 
tions afford  incomparably  stronger  ground  for  the  pre- 
tensions of  the  Jews. 

When  we  turn  to  the  Roman  Church,  common  sense,  to 
say  nothing  of  humanity,  stands  aghast  at  hearing  eternal 
damnation  denounced  against  whomsoever  may  dare,  not 
only  to  deny  the  spiritual  supremacy  of  the  Pope,  but 
also  to  oppose  his  claims  to  any  temporal  possession,  and 
even  to  resist  the  despotism  of  a  parish  priest.  How  long, 
O  Lord,  must  the  earth  continue  to  witness  this  awful 
farce  !  As  if  the  God  whose  nature  we  are  feebly  endeavor- 
ing to  contemplate  could  have  committed  the  eternal  state 
of  a  single  soul  to  the  caprice  of  vindictive  men.  This 
usurpation  or  pretence  of  spiritual  authority  we  observe 
to  be  employed  for  the  appropriate  purpose  of  enslaving 
the  human  conscience. 

In  spite  of  revelation,  men  have  found  many  ways  of 
creating  imaginary  gods  after  their  own  image.  This  was 
especially  true  in  the  Christian  Church  in  the  centuries 
preceding  the  cultivation  of  physical  science.  The  anal- 
ogies of  a  judge  and  of  a  king,  pressed  far  beyond  any  war- 
rant afforded  in  the  Bible,  have  been  made  especially 
fruitful  in  absurdities.  The  familiar  examples  of  human 
potentates,  with  the  well-known  characters  of  those  who 
were  most  prominent  in  history,  the  difficulty  of  access 
and  the  methods  and  the  mediums  of  approach  to  them, 
the  capriciousness  of  their  conduct,  and  the  uncertainty  of 
the  result  in  cases  of  appeal  to  them,  all  these  associations 
have  exercised  a  most  pernicious  influence  on  the  habit  of 
religious  thought.  Traces  of  this  influence  still  appear 
even  among  the  most  enlightened  Christian  communions, 
while  elsewhere  these  human  analogies  now  hold  millions 
of  professed  Christians  in  practical  idolatry. 


FAITH.  28l 

But  of  greater  power,  to  blind  the  human  mind  to  the 
true  conception  of  God,  than  even  man's  exclusiveness 
and  intolerance,  and  misleading  human  analogies,  have 
been  the  deep  and  lasting  impressions  that  have  been  left 
upon  the  Church  by  paganism.  From  paganism  the 
Church  has,  among  other  things,  derived  the  priest  and 
the  sacrifice,  which  is  a  remnant  not  of  Hebrew  but  of 
pagan  rites,  the  worship  of  the  queen  of  heaven,  the  canon- 
ization or  semi-deification  of  men,  the  ideas  of  informing 
and  of  appeasing  an  absent  and  angry  God,  and  the  doc- 
trine of  purgatory.  On  this  last  superstition  the  Roman 
Church  seems  to  have  improved.  The  school-boy  reads 
the  original  fable  in  his  Virgil,  but  we  do  not  learn  that 
the  priests  of  Jupiter  ever  thought  of  the  stupendous  ac- 
count to  which  it  could  be  turned. 

But  above  all,  the  Church  received  from  heathen  an- 
tiquity the  dogmas,  that  ignorance  is  the  mother  of  devo- 
tion, and  that  reason  and  faith  are  antagonistic  to  each 
other.  In  their  original  application  these  dogmas  were 
perfectly  true.  There  could  be  no  reconciliation  between 
the  philosophy  of  Greece,  in  the  age  of  its  maturity,  and 
the  system  of  classic  mythology.  The  philosopers  then 
realized,  perhaps  as  clearly  as  we  do  now,  that  the  deities 
who  received  the  adoration  of  the  vulgar,  whose  worship 
was  woven  into  the  fabrics  of  their  domestic  and  social 
and  political  life,  in  whose  temples  and  images  art  gave 
expression  to  its  loftiest  conceptions,  the  stories  of  whose 
births  and  deeds  constituted  the  chief  intellectual  posses- 
sion of  the  multitude,  and  the  imposing  ritual  of  whose 
service  awed  and  held  captive  their  imaginations,  were  all 
"  airy  nothings,"  who  from  the  poet's  pen  had  received  their 
"  names  and  habitations."  So  when  philosophy  and  pa- 
ganism met  in  the  same  communities,  nothing  could  be 
more  true  than  were  these  two  dogmas.  Ignorance  was 


282  FAITH. 

the  mother  of  devotion,  and  between  reason  and  credulity, 
miscalled  faith,  there  was  complete  antagonism. 

As  the  Christian  Church  degenerated  into  a  mighty 
system  of  imposture,  with  which  it  combined  a  system  of 
extortion  that  paganism  never  knew,  it  naturally  accepted 
and  made  full  practical  use  of  this  legacy,  the  endurance 
of  which  has  seemed  to  be  one  of  the  strange  phenomena 
of  history.  The  fact  is,  these  maxims  of  paganism  have 
endured,  and  still  endure,  because  they  are  true  in  their 
application  to  all  human  substitutes  for  true  religion. 
While  the  latter  demands  the  exercise  of  the  highest  in- 
telligence, every  form  of  human  counterfeit  shuns  its 
searching  light.  Moreover,  the  merely  traditionary  in- 
fluence of  those  dogmas,  especially  of  that  one  which 
declares  an  antagonism  between  reason  and  faith,  is  felt 
universally  even  to  this  day;  and  that  in  a  degree  that 
illustrates  how  difficult  a  thing  it  is  for  the  mind  to  shake 
off  the  chains  of  a  falsehood  that  bears  the  stamp  of  age. 
This  dogma  still  exercises  an  insidious  power,  even  where 
religion  has  been  most  cleansed  from  man's  defilement, 
and  over  minds  by  whom  the  naked  proposition,  in  its 
terms,  would  be  instantly  rejected. 

But,  O  my  friend,  let  us  get  away  from  these  exhibitions 
of  human  infirmity,  and  cast  off  from  our  spirits  the  spell 
of  their  misleading  and  contracting  and  degrading  influ- 
ences, and  come  forth  into  the  presence  of  the  God  of  all 
revelation.  So  far,  too,  as  we  may,  let  us  rise  above  the 
effects  of  familiarity  with  the  amazing  exhibitions  of  His 
love,  and  behold  that  love  as,  universal  and  changeless,  it 
enfolds  us  on  every  side.  Let  us  lift  our  eyes  to  the 
heavens,  where  the  Almighty  has  written  his  name,  and 
see  the  sun  forever  shining  in  his  strength,  not  with  partial 
glory,  but  to  quicken  into  life  and  gladness  alike  each  in- 
dividual being,  to  reveal  alike  every  object,  to  penetrate 


FAITH.  283 

every  eye.  Let  us  look  upon  the  earth,  that  cannot  for- 
get one  grain  of  sand.  And  as  we  behold  this  glory  and 
realize  this  equal  care,  and  as  we  feel  the  animating  breath 
of  the  universal  air,  let  us  receive  into  our  minds  the  great 
truth,  that  every  thing  was  intended  to  promote  the 
growth,  and  encourage  the  exercise,  of  faith  toward  God 
in  the  soul  of  man. 

In  endeavoring  to  rise  to  the  contemplation  of  this 
theme,  a  definition  of  faith  seems  first  to  be  called  for. 
What,  then,  is  faith?  I  answer,  faith  is  a  state  or  con- 
dition of  the  mind,  rather  than  a  form  of  spiritual  activity. 
It  is  that  state  of  trust,  peace,  and  repose  of  the  soul  in 
God,  which  is  not  capable  of  being  disturbed.  Faith  and 
love  are  intimately  blended  with  one  another.  Love  is 
the  form  of  spiritual  activity  by  which  the  Infinite  object 
of  faith  is  recognized,  and  of  which  faith  is  itself  the  re- 
sult. Faith,  on  the  other  hand,  is  the  ground  out  of 
which  love  springs  forth.  Each  one  works  forever  to  inten- 
sify the  other. 

Faith  can  have  no  existence  in  the  philosophic  mind 
where  there  is  no  perception  of  God  in  His  works.  To 
the  mind  in  which  that  meaningless  expression,  "  the  uni- 
form constitution  and  course  of  nature,"  rises  like  a  wall 
before  the  sight,  and  which  feels  no  impulse  to  penetrate 
through  this  senseless  jargon,  to  the  bright  region  where 
all  truth  is  found,  nothing  but  darkness  is  possible. 
But  to  the  illumined  spirit,  that  has  been  re-created  in  the 
moral  image  of  God,  and  so  has  become  enabled  in  all  the 
activities  of  nature  to  behold  the  eternal  faithfulness  of 
the  Infinite  Father,  the  unvarying  activity  of  His  love,  that 
realizes  how,  in  its  utter  helplessness,  it  is  every  moment 
carried  in  His  arms,  and  folded  to  His  bosom,  that  feels 
the  rapture  of  conscious  participation  in  His  universal  and 
infinite  affection,  to  such  a  spirit  faith  is  the  natural  and 
necessary  state. 


284  FAITH. 

In  this  perception  of  the  changeless  nature  of  the  love 
of  God,  we  find,  as  has  already  been  expressed,  the  real 
and  only  ground  of  faith.  It  is  obvious  that-  faith  follows 
necessarily  from  this  perception,  and  must  exist  in  the 
soul  just  in  the  degree  in  which  this  perception  itself  be- 
comes clear  and  distinct.  The  two  are  inseparable.  Faith 
cannot  exist  where  the  Divine  love  is  not  recognized,  and 
it  cannot  be  wanting  where  this  love  is  recognized.  It 
must  coexist  with  the  apprehension  of  this  love,  just 
according  to  the  degree  of  such  apprehension. 

We  conclude,  therefore,  that  "  reason  "  and  faith  must 
harmonize,  whenever  the  facts  on  which  adjudgment  is  to  be 
based  are  all  present  to  consciousness.  It  will  be  admitted, 
necessarily,  that,  in  this  as  in  any  other  case,  all  the  facts 
must  be  so  present,  in  order  that  the  mind,  in  its  judicial 
activity,  may  arrive  at  a  correct  conclusion.  This  harmony, 
it  is  evident,  must  become  more  complete,  as  the  spiritual 
comprehension  grows  larger,  and  as  the  conceptions  which 
are  formed,  or  the  recognitions  which  are  made,  by  the 
highest  mode  of  our  spiritual  activity  become  more  dis- 
tinct. 

As  this  symmetrical  intellectual  and  emotional  develop- 
ment of  our  nature  goes  on,  we  must  perceive  more  and 
more  clearly  the  analogies  with  which  the  creation  is  filled, 
which  illustrate  the  relation  of  the  soul  of  man  to  God. 
All  things  combine  to  tell  us,  with  continually  more  clear 
and  delightful  voice,  the  everlasting  story  of  our  Father's 
love.  As  we  know  that  the  earth  will  not  fly  away  and 
leave  us  desolate  in  space,  so  we  know  that  nothing  can 
ever  separate  us  from  the  Infinite  Being,  between  whom 
and  us  there  exists  the  attraction  of  love. 

Two  results  follow  from  the  development  of  faith ;  or 
rather,  two  things  attend  this  development,  and  grow  in 
degree  with  it.  The  first  of  these  is  the  perception  or 


FAITH.  285 

realization  of  the  truth,  that  the  state  of  harmony  of  the 
soul  with  the  nature  of  God  is  the  only  real  good,  and  the 
want  of  this  harmony  is  the  only  real  evil ;  that  all  other 
seeming  good  or  ill  is  good  or  ill  in  reality,  and  is  to  be 
desired  or  to  be  dreaded,  only  as  it  will  promote,  or  will 
hinder,  the  attainment  of  this  state  of  harmony ;  which 
becomes  the  object  of  supreme  and  exclusive  longing,  just 
in  the  degree  that  the  spirit  has  already  attained  to  it. 
The  individual  of  necessity  in  the  same  degree  rises 
superior  to  the  vicissitudes  of  time.  External  conditions 
have  less  and  less  power  to  affect  his  repose.  He  becomes 
able  to  glory  in  tribulations.  He  knows  that  trials  and 
distresses  are  the  crowning  assurance  of  the  love  of  the 
Father,  who  by  these  means  draws  the  soul  more  closely 
to  himself. 

The  second  result  is  intimately  connected  with  the  first. 
The  spirit  has  found  the  source  of  joy.  There  is  no  pes- 
simism now,  no  repinings  seek  for  expression  now.  The 
spirit  sees  in  all  around  it  the  reflection  of  its  own  glad- 
ness. It  rejoices  in  the  realization  of  the  truth  that  this 
is  a  good  world,  that  it  is  the  very  best  world  that  Al- 
mighty Goodness  could  make,  that  every  thing  in  the 
earth  and  the  heavens  is  intended  to  minister  to  uni- 
versal gladness,  that  the  normal,  healthy  state  of  every 
being  is  a  state  of  joy.  The  spirit  rejoices  in  all  the  in- 
fluences which  tend  to  enlarge  its  powers  and  capabilities, 
and  quicken  it  into  every  form  of  healthful  activity.  It 
rejoices  especially  in  every  thing  that  helps  it  to  form  the 
grand  conception  of  the  universal  and  necessary  nature  of 
the  truth  and  love  of  God,  that  infinite  and  changeless 
reality,  of  which  the  whole  nature  of  things  is  the  mighty 
manifestation. 

Let  us  turn  again  to  the  Bible.  Is  this  book  in  har- 
mony with  nature  here  ?  Yes,  emphatically  yes.  This 


286  FAITH, 

dependence,  this  care,  this  trust,  this  joy, — the  Bible  is 
luminous  with  all  these.  In  these  respects,  also,  the  Bible 
appears  as  the  verbal  expression  of  truth,  as  this  exists  in 
the  nature  of  things.  About  this  expression  it  is  also  to 
be  observed,  that  it  is  not  such  an  expression  as  could  be 
made  by  any  finite  mind.  It  always  transcends  our  power 
of  comprehension.  The  expressions  of  these  truths  which 
are  employed  in  the  Bible  are  always  of  a  nature  requiring 
spiritual  discernment,  and  calculated  continually  to  raise 
the  mind  which  is  capable  of  such  discernment  to  a  fuller 
apprehension  of  them. 

Moreover,  that  apprehension  which  is  the  deepest  and 
the  fullest  finds  the  language  of  the  Bible  satisfying, 
and  more  than  satisfying.  This  language  is  still  stimula- 
ting. It  conveys  to  the  mind,  as  this  becomes  capable  of 
receiving  it,  a  sense  of  a  degree  of  care  and  trust  and  joy 
to  which  there  is  no  limit.  This  is  especially  true  of  the 
words  of  the  Christ.  When  we  reflect  upon  the  character 
of  the  expressions  that  are  employed  by  the  Christ  for  the 
presentation  and  illustration  of  these  themes,  we  cannot 
fail  to  perceive  that  the  language  applies  to  realities  which 
are  infinite  in  their  nature,  and  that  these  realities  are  com- 
pletely apprehended  by  the  mind  from  which  the  language 
proceeds. 


PRAYER. 


I  SHOULD  not  have  presumed  to  touch  this  high  theme, 
if  it  had  not  appeared  to  me  that  the  true  view  of  the 
nature  and  office  of  prayer  grew  directly  out  of  the  pre- 
ceding line  of  thought ;  and  that,  therefore,  the  presenta- 
tion of  that  view  in  this  connection  would  tend  to  remove 
doubts  respecting  the  efficacy  of  prayer,  which  exist  in 
minds  to  whom  these  papers  are  especially  addressed. 
These  doubts  have  been  encouraged  by  criticism  from 
high  scientific  authority,  criticism  that  was  imagined  to  be 
based  on  scientific  grounds,  but  which,  in  reality,  pro- 
ceeded from  an  entire  misconception  of  the  subject. 

The  question  is  a  common  one  :  "  How  is  prayer  to  God 
to  be  reconciled  with  the  idea  of  his  changeless  nature?" 
"  If  the  purposes  of  God  move  on  eternally  to  their  accom- 
plishment, like  the  earth  in  its  orbit,  how  are  these  pur- 
poses to  be  modified  or  the  events  to  be  affected,  in  the 
least  degree,  by  prayer?" 

This  question  is  not  to  be  answered  directly,  but  it  dis- 
appears, as  a  reasonable  expression,  as  soon  as  we  have 
got  a  correct  idea  of  the  nature  of  prayer. 

The  common  idea  of  prayer,  and  the  idea  which  gives 
apparent  point  to  the  above  question,  has  been  in  a  large 
degree  derived  from  human  analogies,  which  here,  as 
everywhere  else,  are  inadequate  and  misleading.  A  peti- 
tion addressed  to  an  earthly  potentate  or  tribunal  or 

287 


288  PRA  YER. 

parent  is  always  designed  to  influence  the  party  addressed. 
It  is  intended,  first,  to  furnish  information  that  such 
party  did  not  before  possess,  and  secondly,  to  incline  him 
favorably  towards  some  object,  either  from  a  previous 
state  of  indifference,  or  from  a  contrary  inclination.  The 
design  of  the  petition  is  to  induce  the  earthly  superior  to 
form  or  to  change  a  purpose,  and  the  result  is  always  un- 
certain. All  these  notions,  derived  from  human  analogies, 
underlie  and  contribute  more  or  less  to  influence  or  to 
form  the  common  idea  of  prayer  to  God,  so  far  as  this  idea 
has  any  definiteness.  It  may  be  added  that  this  idea  of 
prayer  is  naturally  formed  by  minds  which  have  no  ex- 
perimental knowledge  of  its  true  nature.  Moreover,  such 
minds  may  often  be  disposed  to  insist  on  this  conception, 
as  being  the  only  one  possible  to  be  imagined,  because  it 
is  the  only  one  which  they  themselves  can  form.  The 
true  nature  of  prayer  is,  however,  very  far  removed  from 
any  such  conception. 

Prayer  is  the  highest  form  of  cooperative  action  re- 
quired on  the  part  of  man.  It  is  that  cooperative  action 
on  his  part  upon  which  the  reception  of  the  highest  good 
has  been  made  dependent.  The  general  truth  has  been 
established,  that  our  own  cooperation,  to  the  full  extent  of 
our  ability,  is  essential  to  the  obtaining  of  any  good  what- 
ever. It  has  been  shown  that  there  are  various  modes  of 
this  cooperation,  that  these  modes  of  necessity  differ  ac- 
cording to  the  nature  of  the  benefit  sought,  but  that  in 
all  cases  alike  the  faithful  putting  forth  of  our  own  co- 
operative effort  is  the  condition  upon  which  we  receive 
the  benefit.  We  observed  that  in  each  case  there  is  com- 
paratively little  of  the  work  which  has  to  be  done  that  we 
have  been  made  capable  of  doing,  that  the  doing  of  that 
little  requires  the  exertion  of  our  utmost  efforts,  and  that 
it  must  always  be  done. 


PRA  YER.  289 

We  are  not  to  inquire  why  this  is  so.  Our  observation 
and  our  conscious  experience  both  teach  us  the  fact  that 
the  requirement  is  a  universal  one.  We  cannot  imagine 
an  exception  to  it.  Our  own  cooperative  effort  is  always 
necessary,  and,  other  things  being  equal,  we  receive  every 
thing  in  the  degree  that  is  proportionate  to  the  earnest- 
ness and  fidelity  with  which  we  do  our  part. 

Now  the  highest  possible  good  of  every  human  being  is 
not  any  thing  of  an  external  or  of  a  temporary  character, 
neither  does  such  highest  good  consist  in  knowledge  or  in 
intellectual  power.  The  highest  benefit  that  can  be  con- 
ferred upon  any  individual  is  the  transformation  of  his 
nature.  The  object  supremely  to  be  desired  by  every 
rational  being  is,  that  his  own  nature  shall  be  brought 
into  a  state  of  harmony  with  the  nature  of  God,  or,  in  the 
stronger  and  deeper  language  of  the  Bible,  that  he  shall 
be  made  a  "partaker  of  the  Divine  nature." 

It  cannot  be  conceived  that  in  the  case  of  this  supreme 
good  an  exception  should  exist  to  the  otherwise  universal 
law ;  that  man  should  have  this  blessing  alone  thrust  upon 
him  without  any  cooperative  act  on  his  part.  Neither  can 
it  be  conceived  that,  while  in  all  other  cases  the  receptive 
state  of  our  being  is  an  active  state,  in  this  case  only  it  is 
a  passive  one.  In  some  way,  then,  man  must  actively 
cooperate  in  the  work  of  receiving  this  blessing.  There 
must  be  something  that  he  can  do,  and  that  he  must  do, 
with  all  the  energy  of  his  nature.  There  is  only  one  thing 
that  he  can  do. 

This  is  to  pray.  When  an  individual  recognizes  at  once 
his  need  and  his  helplessness,  in  this  supreme  respect  of 
the  radical  and  complete  transformation  of  his  nature,  he 
intuitively  cries  out :  "  Create  in  me  a  clean  heart,  O 
Lord."  Just  in  the  degree  in  which  one  perceives  this 
need  and  this  helplessness,  in  which  their  reality  is  dis- 


290  PRA  YER. 

closed  to  him,  just  in  that  degree,  of  necessity,  will  his 
supplication  be  earnest  and  persevering.  Thus  it  has 
been  with  sincere  men  in  all  ages  and  among  all  people, 
according  to  the  light  that  each  one  has  possessed.  It  is 
affecting  to  read  the  prayer  of  Socrates,  as  recorded  by 
Plato  :  "  O  friendly  Pan  "  (that  is  the  All,  the  Universal 
Being),  "  as  well  as  all  other  gods,  as  many  as  are  in  this 
place,  give  to  me  inmost  beauty  of  soul."  1 

The  fact  must  be  stated  again,  that  the  only  thing 
which  man  can  do  toward  obtaining  this  supreme  good, 
this  gradual  transformation  of  his  nature  into  the  likeness 
of  Christ,  is  to  make  this  supplication.  This  is  the  form 
of  cooperative  effort  that  is  demanded  from  man,  as  the 
condition  on  which  alone  he  can  receive  this  gift,  between 
which  and  all  inferior  gifts  there  can  be  no  comparison. 
Prayer  is  the  mode  of  effort  that  is  adapted  to  the  nature 
of  the  purely  spiritual  good  .which  is  sought  by  it  ;  pre- 
cisely as  labor  and  study  are  the  modes  of  effort  that  arc 
adapted  to  the  various  forms  of  inferior  good  which  are 
sought  by  them. 

Between  all  these  modes  of  effort  there  exists  a  likeness 
that  may  not  at  first  be  perceived.  Both  labor  and  study 
are  the  practical  modes  of  asking  for  the  benefits  that  are 
obtained  by  those  means  respectively.  In  employing 
them,  we  express  our  desire  for  those  benefits  in  the  only 
practical  way,  namely,  by  putting  our  minds  into  a  re- 
ceptive condition,  and  making  use  of  the  obvious  means 
for  obtaining  them.  So  also  in  prayer,  man  puts  his  mind 
into  the  only  condition  in  which  it  is  capable  of  receiving 
this  spiritual  good,  and  employs  the  only  and  obvious 


Ildv  re  xal  akkoi  0601  T  rj8e  Seoi, 
Sai  ravdoSsv  Phaedrus,  p.  279  st. 

A  Latin  note  interprets  this  prayer  as  follows  :   "  Quod  enim  orat,  ut  intus 
in  pectore  gerat  pulcritudinem." 


PRA  YER.  29 1 

means  of  obtaining  it.  By  the  obvious  means  is  meant 
the  means  that,  to  the  mind  filled  with  the  desire  after 
holiness,  suggests  itself  as  naturally  and  necessarily  as  the 
suitable  means  for  obtaining  any  forms  of  inferior  good 
suggest  themselves  to  the  mind  that  is  filled  with  a  desire 
after  them.  So  labor  and  study  and  prayer  are  the  prac- 
tical expressions  of  these  different  desires,  in  modes 
adapted  to  the  nature  of  each  one. 

But  the  objector  may  say :  "  Still,  prayer  is  an  effort 
to  change  a  result,  that,  from  all  eternity,  has  been  fixed 
in  the  purpose  of  God." 

The  reply  to  this  objection,  which  at  once  exposes  its 
superficial  nature,  and  reveals  the  fact  that  it  is  founded 
upon  our  own  ignorance  and  limited  power  of  thought,  is 
this :  The  objection  lies  equally  against  every  other  form 
of  cooperative  effort  on  the  part  of  man,  or  against  all 
human  activity  whatever. 

It  is  true  respecting  this  spiritual  benefit,  and  equally 
true  respecting  all  other  benefits,  that  they  are  alike  of 
necessity  fixed  in  the  eternal  purpose,  and  that  at  the 
same  time  they  are  made  dependent  on  our  own  exer- 
tions. But  men  do  not  raise  this  difficulty  in  other  cases. 
They  are  not  at  all  troubled  about  the  fact  that  if  they  do 
not  sow  they  will  not  reap,  if  they  do  not  observe  and 
study  they  will  not  learn,  or  if  they  do  not  put  forth  the 
adequate  effort  they  will  not  accomplish  any  result  what- 
ever. They  never  think  of  inquiring  what  the  fixed  pur- 
pose of  God  may  be  in  these  respects,  or  of  looking  upon 
their  exertions  as  attempts  to  change  the  Divine  purpose. 
In  all  these  cases  men  inquire  only  what  there  is  for  them 
to  do,  and  they  gird  up  their  loins,  and  apply  themselves 
in  earnest  to  do  it.  So  we  have  no  more  right,  and  it  is 
no  more  natural  to  sincere  men,  to  be  troubled  about  the 
dependence  of  spiritual  blessing  upon  the  employment  by 
us  of  the  means  of  prayer. 


2Q2  PRA  YER. 

The  observation  is  a  familiar  one,  and  is  applicable  to 
our  work. and  study  and  prayer  alike,  that  the  means  must 
be  ordained  just  as  absolutely  as  the  result.  We  can, 
however,  hardly  pretend  to  explain  the  mystery  in  which 
the  whole  subject  is  involved,  and  which  is  only  one  of 
the  wilderness  of  mysteries  within  which  we  have  our 
being.  It  is  very  certain,  however,  that  such  questions 
should  give  us  no  more  concern,  and  should  have  no  more 
effect  upon  our  action,  in  the  case  of  prayer,  than  they  do 
respecting  any  other  form  of  our  mental  or  physical 
activity. 

A  special  objection  is  often  urged  against  prayer,  which 
is,  that  no  connection  can  be  perceived  by  us  between 
prayer  and  the  answer  to  it,  as  there  can  be  between  labor 
or  study  and  their  results.  The  inference  that  the  objec- 
tor would  like  to  have  drawn  is,  that  because  such  connec- 
tion cannot  be  perceived  by  us,  therefore  such  connection 
cannot  exist.  In  an  earlier  paper  attention  has  been 
called  to  the  major  premise  of  the  syllogism,  from  which 
such  a  conclusion  would  follow. 

In  truth,  however,  when  we  attempt  to  enter  upon  the 
subject  of  the  relation  between  cause  and  effect,  we  at 
once  find  ourselves  beyond  our  depth.  We  know  nothing 
beyond  uniformly  observed  sequences.  The  nature  of  the 
connection  between  the  precedent  and  the  consequent 
acts  is  hidden  from  us  in  all  cases  alike.  A  familiar  illus- 
tration may  make  this  limitation  of  our  knowledge  more 
obvious.  In  crossing  the  bay,  one  looks  upon  a  vessel 
that  is  being  towed  by  means  of  a  line,  and  then  looks  at 
the  moon.  He  observes  that  he  can  see  what  compels 
the  vessel  to  follow  the  tug,  but  cannot  see  what  holds 
the  moon  to  the  earth.  One  looking  more  deeply,  how- 
ever, will  perceive  that  he  cannot  discover  the  compelling 
force  any  more  in  the  one  case  than  he  can  in  the  other. 


PRA  YER.  293 

What  we  term  the  attraction  of  cohesion,  by  which  the 
rope  is  held  together,  is  in  reality  as  much  a  mystery  to 
us  as  the  attraction  of  gravitation  is.  So  also,  and  in  a 
sense  that  is  no  more  absolute,  the  sequence  between 
prayer  and  its  answer,  as  well  as  that  which  exists  between 
labor  and  its  reward,  are  both  alike  among  "  the  secret 
things"  that  "  belong  unto  the  Lord  our  God." 

Prayer  is  the  real  desire  of  the  soul.  Whatever  in  its 
depths  the  soul  longs  for  above  all  other  things,  that  is 
the  object  of  its  prayer.  When  this  longing  of  the  soul 
is  after  the  state  of  holiness,  for  itself,  for  others,  for  all 
mankind,  then,  just  in  the  degree  in  which  this  desire 
takes  possession  of  the  soul,  and  all  other  objects  are  lost 
sight  of  in  the  realization  of  the  incomparable  value  of 
this  good,  just  in  that  degree  does  the  soul  cooperate  with 
God  in  this  supreme  sense. 

The  line  of  thought  which  has  been  followed  seems 
necessarily  to  lead  to  the  conclusion  that  prayer  is  the 
natural  and  spontaneous  act  of  the  spirit  to  which  God 
has  in  some  degree  been  revealed,  and  that  it  is  the  mode 
of  man's  cooperation  with  God  in  the  work  of  his  own 
exaltation  to  a  state  of  holiness,  or  to  a  condition  of 
harmony  of  nature  with  God ;  that  supreme  work,  to 
which  our  environment  of  force  and  truth  and  beauty,  and 
underneath  all  of  love,  in  the  physical  creation  is  designed 
to  contribute,  as  its  ultimate  purpose  ;  that  work  for  which 
the  supreme  manifestation  of  infinite  love  in  the  great 
mystery  of  the  crucified  Christ  was  given  ;  and  finally  that 
work  which  all  human  suffering,  also,  is  adapted,  and  so 
evidently  is  designed,  to  aid  in  accomplishing. 

Let  us  now  turn  to  the  teaching  of  the  Bible  on  this 
subject.  Here,  as  everywhere,  we  shall  find  the  Bible  to 
harmonize  with  and  complete  the  teaching  of  nature. 
The  Bible  gives  to  this  teaching  distinct  expression.  It 


294  PRA 

is  its  audible  voice.  In  the  Bible  this  natural  command 
to  the  cooperative  activity  of  prayer,  like  all  other  natural 
commands,  finds  living  and  adequate  utterance. 

For  our  first  illustration  we  turn  to  the  Lord's  prayer, 
which  is  the  only  form  of  petition  taught  and  enjoined 
by  the  Christ.  Here  the  following  features  are  first 
to  be  noted :  This  prayer  is  to  be  addressed  by  every 
individual  directly  to  God.  No  supplication  is  to  be  made 
to  any  other  being,  not  even  'to  the  Christ,  as  distinct 
from  the  Fattier.  All  intermediate  aid  is  excluded.  No 
creature  is  to  come  between  the  soul  and  its  Father  in 
Heaven.  The  very  ideas  of  representation,  or  of  the  re- 
moval of  God  to  a  distance  from  the  individual  suppliant, 
would  seem  to  be  made  impossible.  Instead  of  all  this, 
the  language  of  this  prayer  assumes  the  fact  that  every- 
where and  at  all  times  each  individual  soul  is  already  and 
continually  in  the  immediate  presence  of  God.  In  all 
these  things  we  recognize  what  we  know  to  be  the  truth 
with  respect  to  the  God  of  nature. 

We  come  now  to  the  prayer  itself.  That  which  is  the 
supreme  object  of  desire  naturally  rises  first  of  all  for  ex- 
pression, and  is  longest  dwelt  upon.  So,  after  the  fond 
address,  expressive  of  the  endearing  relations  existing  be- 
tween the  soul  and  God,  there  comes  first  the  prayer  for 
the  coming  of  God's  kingdom,  or,  in  other  words,  for  the 
restoration  of  all  mankind  to  the  state  of  holiness.  This 
petition  is  repeated  three  times,  in  words  which,  though 
very  different,  mean  in  reality  the  same  thing.  This  three- 
fold repetition  shows  the  earnestness  with  which  the  re' 
covered  soul  dwells  upon  this  supreme  object. 

While  the  accomplishment  of  this  triune  petition  in- 
volves and  depends  wholly  upon  the  exaltation  of  man- 
kind to  a  sinless  state, — while  this  is  the  work,  and  the  only 
work,  to  be  done  in  answer  to  these  petitions,  still  in  their 


PR  A  YER.  295 

form  these  petitions  present  the  glory  of  God  as  the 
supreme  object  of  desire,  and  do  not,  except  by  necessary 
implication,  refer  to  man  at  all.  This,  it  is  evident,  is  the 
form  in  which  adoring  love  must  of  necessity  frame  its 
supplications. 

Besides  that  which  is  directly  expressed  in  this  three- 
fold prayer,  there  are  implied  in  its  language  two  things 
which  are  of  the  deepest  Interest.  The  first  of  these  is, 
that  there  exists  now  a  state  of  being  in  which  the  will  of 
God  is  perfectly  done,  in  which  absolute  harmony  and 
unity  with  the  Divine  nature  prevails.  The  second  is, 
that  on  the  earth  also,  and  in  the  same  perfect  degree, 
God's  name  shall  be  hallowed,  his  kingdom  shall  come,  his 
will  shall  be  done  ;  for  we  cannot  suppose  that  we  have 
been  taught  to  utter  an  idle  petition,  but  rather  one  that 
must  surely  be  fulfilled. 

From  the  great  height  of  this  comprehensive  petition, 
the  prayer  now  descends  to  the  lowly  supplication  for 
personal  mercies.  It  asks  for  nothing  beyond  immediate 
necessary  provision,  and  expresses  a  sense  of  the  absolute 
dependence,  which  is  man's  real  condition.  "  Daily  bread," 
as  employed  in  this  prayer,  is,  however,  an  expression,  the 
deep  meaning  of  which  it  is  impossible  for  us  fully  to 
realize.  We  must  search  for  light  upon  it  through  all  the 
teachings  of  the  Christ.  Primarily  it  is  doubtless  to  be  un- 
derstood in  a  spiritual  sense.  It  forms  a  part  of  that  simple 
but  vivid  figurative  language  everywhere  employed  by 
the  Christ,  who  said  of  himself,  "  I  am  the  bread  of  life." 

Thus  spiritually  regarded,  this  petition  for  "  daily 
bread  "  is  seen  to  be  a  repetition,  in  a  personal  sense,  of  the 
former  general  and  comprehensive  petitions.  It  is  also  a 
petition  framed  in  conformity  with  the  Divine  method  of 
gradual  growth  and  development,  which  is  the  uniform 
method  of  the  transforming  work  of  God. 


296  PRA  YER. 

After  this  there  follows  the  fearful  petition  with  a  con- 
dition. This  condition  was  directly  after  explained  and 
emphasized  by  the  great  Teacher,  with  the  assurance  that 
in  the  very  nature  of  things  it  is  only  the  forgiving  soul 
that  can  receive  forgiveness.  Here  we  discover  again  the 
operation  of  the  law  of  likeness.  Just  as  the  revelations 
of  truth  and  beauty  and  love  are  possible  only  to  truth 
and  beauty  and  love,  so  forgiveness  is  possible  only  to 
forgiveness.  We  recognize  another  phase  of  the  universal 
harmony  that  runs  through  the  spiritual  creation. 

The  prayer  then  closes  with  a  petition,  likewise  repeated 
in  substance,  for  the  spiritual  watch  and  care  of  God. 

It  is  to  be  observed  further  respecting  prayer,  that  in 
order  to  be  effective  it  must  be  the  habitual  state  of  the 
mind.  Precisely  as  in  all  our  other  forms  of  coopera- 
tive effort,  so  also  here.  It  is  the  long-continued  labor 
or  application  or  prayer,  that  is  demanded  and  re- 
warded. There  must  be  in  prayer  the  same  fixed  and 
habitual  concentration  of  the  whole  being,  that  men  who 
are  capable  of  strong  purpose  exhibit  with  respect  to  any 
thing  whatever  about  which  they  are  in  downright  earnest. 
And,  indeed,  prayer  calls  for  this  concentrated  and  perse- 
vering earnestness  in  the  highest  possible  degree  ;  as  the 
object  that  is  sought  is  of  inconceivably  greater  conse- 
quence than  any  other  object  can  be. 

This  is  illustrated  in  the  prayer  of  Solomon  for  wisdom. 
The  selection  of  this  illustration  may  perhaps  surprise  the 
cursory  reader  of  the  Bible.  Indeed  the  real  character  of 
this  prayer,  in  this  respect,  is  generally  misapprehended. 
So  much  is  this  the  case,  that  the  answer  to  the  prayer  of 
Solomon  is  often  cited  to  show  the  imagined  special  and 
capricious  action  of  God,  in  favoring  whom  he  chooses,  with- 
out being  governed  by  a  general  principle.  The  erroneous 
and  superficial  nature  of  this  view  will  at  once  appear. 


PRA  YER.  297 

In  considering  this  petition,  we  are  struck  with  the  fact, 
that  when  suddenly  the  command  was  addressed  to  Solo- 
mon, "  Ask  what  I  shall  give  thee,"  the_  answer  of  the 
youthful  king  was  ready.  There  was  no  hesitation  about 
its  utterance.  It  was  also  single.  He  made  but  one  re- 
quest. Although  not  limited  in  any  way  he  asked  for 
only  one  thing.  He  asked  for  wisdom  and  knowledge  "  to 
judge  this  thy  so  great  people,"  and  he  ceased. 

Now  when  we  reflect  upon  it,  it  is  evident  that  this 
could  not  have  been  a  desire  suddenly  formed,  in  its  single- 
ness and  distinctness,  and  expressed  on  the  spur  of  the 
moment.  This  must  have  been  the  ripened  and  absorbing 
longing,  with  which  the  whole  being  of  Solomon  was 
already  filled,  in  order  that  it  should  rise  thus  sponta- 
neously to  his  lips,  and  find  clear  and  eloquent  utterance, 
at  the  instant  of  demand. 

But  we  are  not  left  to  conjecture  on  this  point.  In 
three  places  the  prayers  of  David  for  his  son  are  recorded 
to  the  same  effect,  and  one  of  these  prayers  is  expressed 
in  this  very  same  language.  The  history  is  thus  brought 
sufficiently  before  us.  This  had  been  the  habitual  petition 
for  Solomon  of  his  father  before  him.  Solomon  had 
listened  to  this  petition  from  his  infancy,  and  had  made  it 
his  own.  It  had  become  the  habitual  state  of  his  mind. 
When  the  responsibility  of  ruling  was  cast  upon  him,  this 
longing  for  knowledge  and  wisdom  from  God  became  in 
the  highest  degree  intensified. 

Then,  when  the  instant  of  test  came  to  Solomon,  as  it 
comes  to  all  without  a  warning,  when  the  work  of  years 
in  the  formation  of  character  is  to  be  shown  in  the  act  or 
decision  of  the  moment,  "Ask  what  I  shall  give  thee," 
there  could  be  no  struggle,  nor  any  hesitation,  because 
there  was  no  other  desire  in  his  heart,  except  the  life-long 
one  that  filled  his  whole  being. 


298  PRA  YER. 

Iii  addition  to  the  Lord's  Prayer,  much  of  the  teachings 
of  the  Christ  relate  to  the  subject  of  prayer.  These 
instructions  are  of  the  deepest  significance.  Our  present 
view  of  them  must  be  limited  and  general. 

fci  studying  the  words  of  the  Christ,  we  find,  among 
their  many  striking  features,  two  with  which  we  are  now 
especially  concerned.  These  are,  their  simplicity  and,  on 
appropriate  occasions,  their  intensity.  Respecting  the 
first  of  these  features,  it  is  to  be  observed  among  men, 
that  when,  as  the  result  of  deep  and  prolonged  study,  a 
person  has  become  familiar  with  any  particular  subject,  it 
is  generally  the  case  that  his  statements  and  explanations 
of  this  subject  become  simple  and  direct,  and  this  just  in 
the  degree  of  his  familiarity  with  it.  In  this  respect  there 
is  no  human  teaching  that  can,  in  the  most  remote 
degree,  be  compared  with  the  absolute  simplicity  and 
directness  of  the  language,  respecting  the  deepest  truths, 
that  was  always  employed  by  the  Christ. 

But  the  language  of  the  Christ  frequently  presents  a 
startling  boldness  of  imagery  and  an  intensity  of  expres- 
sion which  are  entirely  unique.  In  this  respect,  also,  it 
differs  from  all  other  recorded  speech.  As  the  parables  of 
our  Lord  required  for  their  production,  first,  an  absolute 
comprehension  of  the  spiritual  truths  that  were  to  be 
illustrated,  and  secondly,  an  intimate  knowledge  of  the 
duality  of  the  creation,  by  which  all  common  and  familiar 
things  are  made  adapted  for  the  illustration  of  these 
truths,  so  in  all  the  teachings  of  the  Christ  we  perceive  the 
same  absolute  knowledge  of  truth,  and  of  the  impossi- 
bility of  its  being  compromised  by  admixture  with  the 
least  degree  of  error.  This  demanded  for  its  expression 
the  ultimate  and  hitherto  unknown  power  of  language, 
language  nothing  like  which  has  ever  been  employed 
since,  as  indeed  it  never  could  be  by  a  finite  intelligence. 


PRA  YER.  299 

In  addition  to  these  features  we  have  everywhere,  also, 
the  form  of  authoritative  declaration.  The  Christ  never 
reasons.  He  assumes  the  office  of  declaring  spiritual 
truth.  This  he  does  in  language  which  is  plain  to  the 
most  simple  understanding,  and  which,  at  the  same  time, 
is  found  by  the  thoughtful  student  to  present  depths  of 
meaning  too  profound  for  human  plummet  to  sound. 

All  these  features  characterize  the  utterances  of  the 
Christ  on  the  subject  of  prayer.  The  great  primary  object 
of  prayer  is  distinguished  by  him  with  singular  vividness. 
He  commands  men  to  ask  in  prayer  for  only  one  thing,  as 
its  sole  appropriate  object.  He  dwells  principally  upon 
negative  instruction.  Most  of  his  teaching  is  directed  to 
declaring  what  we  are  not  to  seek  for  in  prayer.  The  full 
meaning  of  the  language  of  the  Christ,  as  this  is  given  by 
different  evangelists,  is  believed  to  be  expressed  as  fol- 
lows :  "  Have  no  anxiety  about  your  daily  wants."  "  Be 
not  concerned  about  your  part  of  the  universal  bounty." 
"  Be  not  tossed  on  the  billows  of  care."  "  For,"  he 
adds,  "your  Heavenly  Father  knoweth  that  ye  have  need 
of  all  these  things."  "  Consider  the  lilies."  "  Shall  he 
not  much  more  clothe  you?"  "Behold  the  fowls  of  the 
air."  "Ye  are  of  more  value  than  many  sparrows." 
Who  shall  measure  the  meaning  and  the  tenderness  of 
the  language  of  the  Christ  on  this  subject  ?  Although  its 
significance  is  only  feebly  apprehended,  yet  it  reaches  to 
the  heart  of  the  human  race,  and  is  cherished  by  mankind 
among  their  most  precious  treasures. 

The  fact  is  an  impressive  one,  though  it  is  one  we  are 
inclined  to  overlook,  that  this  wonderful  language  is 
employed  by  the  Christ  in  declaring  what  things  we  are 
not  to  pray  for,  and  in  the  effort  to  make  us  understand 
why  we  are  not  to  pray  for  them. 


300  PR  A  YER. 

It  is  to  be  observed  that  the  importance  of  this  instruc- 
tion, as  to  that  for  which  we  are  not  to  ask,  is  emphasized 
by  the  Christ,  by  the  repetition  and  fulness  of  illustration 
with  which  he  dwells  upon  it.  But  there  is  one  thing 
about  which  we  are  to  be  concerned.  There  is  one  thing 
which  we  are  to  seek,  and  that  with  all  the  earnestness  of 
which  we  are  capable.  "  Seek  ye  the  Kingdom  of  God." 

Concerning  this  kingdom,  the  Christ  gave  to  mankind 
this  command  and  promise  :  "  Ask,  and  ye  shall  receive." 
This  is  among  the  simplest  forms  of  speech,  yet  how 
much  does  it  contain  !  Let  us  emphasize  the  first  word, 
the  command,  ask.  Here  we  have  presented  to  us  the 
necessity  of  asking,  as  the  condition  of  receiving  this  gift. 
We  are  taught  that  man  must  cooperate,  in  the  only  pos- 
sible way,  in  the  work  of  securing  this  supreme  good.  A 
mystery  is  involved  in  this  necessity  that  we  cannot 
fathom.  We  recognize  the  fact,  however,  that  obedience 
to  this  requirement  in  the  act  of  prayer  is  in  harmony 
with  the  universal  law  of  cooperation.  Here,  as  every- 
where else,  our  will  must  harmonize  with  the  will  of  God. 
His  desire  to  grant  must  be  met  by  a  corresponding 
desire  on  our  part  to  receive.  This  desire  must,  in  this, 
as  in  all  other  cases,  manifest  itself  in  appropriate  activity. 
With  this  voluntary  cooperation  on  our  part  all  the  infi- 
nite yearning  of  the  Father  may  not  dispense.  This  is 
the  uniform  teaching  of  the  Bible,  which  closes  with  the 
symbol  of  our  cooperative  act  in  drinking:  "Whosoever 
will,  let  him  take  of  the  water  of  life  freely."  However 
trifling  the  act  that  is  required  on  the  part  of  man,  that 
act  must  be  voluntarily  performed. 

In  this  command,  to  ask  for  a  single  object,  we  have 
the  final  illustration  that  will  be  cited  of  the  general  fact, 
that  the  Bible  is  nature  in  language.  This  command,  like 
those  to  which  attention  has  already  been  called,  is  one 


PRAYER.  301 

that  exists  in  the  nature  of  things.  It  arises  out  of  the 
conditions  of  our  existence,  in  the  present  stage  of  our 
being.  As  already  stated,  the  normal  relations  between 
God  and  man  are  those  of  infinite  care  on  the  part  of  God, 
and  infinite  trust,  as  well  as  dependence,  on  the  part  of 
man.  This  care  is  in  reality  exercised,  but  the  correspond- 
ing trust  is  either  altogether  dormant,  or  at  the  best  is  only 
feebly  developed.  The  quickening  of  this  trust  into  full 
activity,  with  the  change  of  nature  which  this  involves,  is 
the  only  good  for  which  we  are  bidden  to  ask.  It  is  also 
not  merely  the  chief,  in  the  absolute  sense  of  the  word  it 
is  the  only,  human  want. 

These  few  words  have  been  given  to  the  command.  We 
now  pass  to  the  promise  :  "  Ye  shall  receive."  The  Christ 
here  declares  the  necessary  connection  between  asking  and 
receiving  this  unspeakable  gift.  In  this  case  also,  the 
consequence  that  was  attached  by  the  Christ  to  this 
promise  is  shown  by  its  repetition.  The  promise,  condi- 
tional upon  the  petition,  is  presented  to  us  six  times, 
in  six  different  forms  of  expression,  growing  in  force 
to  the  end.  Then  in  addition  a  contrast  is  stated  be- 
tween the  certainty  of  the  gifts  or  expressions  of  affection 
of  God  and  of  man,  which  is  important  to  be  dwelt  upon 
also  as  proving  the  divinity  of  the  speaker.  David  had 
said :  "  Like  as  a  father  pitieth  his  children,  so  the  Lord 
pitieth  them  that  fear  Him."  It  is  to  be  observed  that 
human  language  never  went  further  than  this,  and  that 
because  it  could  not.  This  expressed  the  uttermost  limit 
of  human  experience,  and  therefore,  also,  the  uttermost 
limit  of  human  conception.  No  deeper  emotion  can 
form  its  image  in  our  consciousness.  But  the  Christ 
says :  "  If  ye,  then,  being  evil,  know  how  to  give  good 
gifts  to  your  children,  how  much  more  shall  your  Heavenly 
Father  give  the  Holy  Spirit  to  them  that  ask  Him?" 


302  PRA  YER. 

How  much  more !  No  finite  mind  can  measure  the 
meaning  of  these  words.  It  is  only  when  we  consider 
the  faithfulness  of  God  in  nature,  as  shown  in  the  unvary- 
ing uniformity  of  His  beneficent  activity,  that  we  can 
form  in  our  minds  some  notion  of  the  absolute  nature  of 
the  connection  that  is  here  declared  by  the  Christ  to  ex- 
ist between  our  asking  and  our  receiving  this  spiritual  gift. 
In  these  words  of  the  Christ,  "  ask,  and  ye  shall  receive," 
we  hear  the  same  voice  to  which  we  listen  in  the  physical 
creation,  declaring  His  own  unvarying  truth  in  all  His 
conduct.  This  supreme  and  inconceivable  good  is  thus 
declared  to  be  wholly  dependent  on  our  prayers,  and  also 
certain  to  be  given  in  answer  to  them.  The  Bible,  to 
which  we  have  appealed,  teaches  uniformly  that  prayer 
is  the  mode  of  man's  cooperation  in  the  reception  of  this 
good. 

But  Christians  cling  to  the  feeling  that  they  should  pray 
to  God  for  every  thing.  They  ask  if  it  is  not  their  duty  to 
do  so.  Ought  not  men,  they  say,  to  ask  God  for  every 
thing  for  which  they  are  dependent  upon  Him  ?  This  in. 
clination,  which  is  without  doubt  pretty  nearly  a  universal 
one,  shows  three  things :  a  want  of  faith  in  God,  a  feeble 
realization  of  the  infinite  difference  between  all  earthly 
benefits  and  the  single  spiritual  good,  and  a  disposition  to 
ignore  the  positive  and  earnest  command  of  the  Christ.  Let 
us  look  at  the  obvious  reasons  for  this  command.  There 
is,  in  the  first  place,  unspeakable  danger  that  the  desire 
after  inferior  benefits,  or  to  escape  from  inferior  ills,  may 
take  in  the  mind  the  place  of  the  desire  after  the  infinite 
good  and  to  be  delivered  from  the  immeasurable  ill  ;  that 
the  lesser  may  engross  our  thoughts  and  anxiety,  and  hide 
the  greater  from  our  sight.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that 
this  disastrous  result  is  always  produced  in  some  degree, 
and  generally  in  a  large  degree.  This  tendency  it  is, 


PRA  YER.  303 

against  which  these  commands  of  the  Christ  were  ex- 
pressly directed,  and  which  is  to  be  overcome  only  by 
absolute  obedience  to  them. 

It  is  also  to  be  observed,  that  there  is  only  one  thing, 
about  which  we  are  certain  what  the  will  and  purpose  of 
God  is.  That  is,  the  re-creation  of  our  nature,  of  the 
nature  of  all  mankind,  in  His  image.  This  is  the  one 
thing  for  which  we  can  ask  in  the  full  certainty  that  our 
desire  is  in  harmony  with  the  Divine  purpose.  But  here  we 
must  stop.  Concerning  any  inferior  object  of  desire,  we 
cannot  generally  have  the  least  idea  whether  its  possession 
would  promote  orwould  hinder  this  supreme  blessing.  We 
cannot  imagine  whether  our  prayer  for  it  is  in  harmony 
with,  or  contrary  to,  the  beneficent  purpose  of  God.  If 
the  individual  is  really  seeking  the  kingdom  of  God,  with 
the  faintest  appreciation  of  its  nature,  how  is  it  possible 
for  him  to  have  any  desire,  respecting  any  thing  else  what- 
ever, except  to  leave  it  in  the  hands  of  God.  It  would 
seem  as  if  to  the  soul  filled  with  faith  every  thing,  joy  or 
sorrow,  prosperity  or  adversity,  health  or  sickness,  life  or 
death,  would  be  equally  welcome,  because  equally  certain 
to  be  the  means  that  its  Heavenly  Father  was  employing 
to  convey  to  it  the  single  and  priceless  object  of  its 
desire. 

This  is  the  spirit  that  will  be  found  breathing  through 
the  supplicatory  hymns,  which  are  in  familiar  use  among 
all  Christian  people.  It  finds  full  and  fervent  expression 
in  the  verses  commencing : 

"  Thy  will,  not  mine,  O  Lord"  ; 

"  My  Jesus,  as  thou  wilt  "  ; 
"  When  thee  I  seek,  protecting  Power"  ; 

as  well  as  in  many  others.  One  is  struck  with  the  inspired 
character  of  the  language  of  our  hymn  writers  in  this 
respect. 


304 

We  turn  again  to  the  words  of  the  Christ.  "  Sell  all 
that  thou  hast."  Let  nothing  come  between  thy  soul  and 
me.  With  what  tremendous  language  does  He  repeatedly 
drive  this  demand  through  and  through  the  soul.  Then 
comes  the  tenderness,  and  revelation  of  the  method  of 
divine  love  :  "  Blessed  are  they  that  mourn."  Then  the 
assurance,  conditioned  upon  obedience  to  the  command 
"  Seek  ye  first  the  kingdom  of  God  and  his  righteousness," 
that  without  our  asking  "  all  these  things  shall  be  added 
unto  you." 

To  this  agree  the  words  of  the  Psalm  :  "  Let  the  people 
praise  thee,  O  God  ;  let  all  the  people  praise  thee.  Then 
shall  the  earth  yield  her  increase;  and  God,  even  our 
own  God,  shall  bless  us." 

In  the  light  of  this  express  teaching  of  the  Christ,  we 
feel  an  emotion  of  awe  when  we  turn  back  a  thousand 
years,  and  read  the  answer  of  God  to  Solomon  :  "  Because 
thou  hast  not  asked.  *  *  *  I  have  given  thee."  Ob- 
serve the  language :  "  Because  thou  hast  not  asked." 
Solomon  was  animated  by  the  single  spirit  of  consecration 
to  duty.  He  saw  that  he  must  become  a  means  either  of 
good  or  of  harm  to  his  people.  The  absorbing  desire  of 
his  heart  was  that  he  might  be  kept  from  the  latter,  and 
be  enabled  to  achieve  the  former,  of  these  two  ends.  This 
anxiety  filled  his  mind,  so  that  it  was  not  possible  for  him 
to  entertain  any  desires  of  a  personal  nature.  "  And  God 
said  to  Solomon  :  Because  this  was  in  thine  heart,  and 
thou  hast  not  asked  riches,  wealth  or  honor,  nor  the  life 
of  thine  enemies,  neither  yet  hast  asked  long  life  *  *  * 
Behold,  I  have  done  according  to  thy  words  *  *  * 
And  1  have  also  given  thee  that  which  thou  hast  not 
asked." 

A  thousand  years  apart !    The  words  of  God  !    "  Because 


PRA  YER.  305 

thou  hast  not  asked,  I  have  given  thee."     "  Seek  ye  first 
the  kingdom,  and  all  these  things  shall  be  added." 

It  would  seem  that  with  the  very  beginning  of  faith 
there  must  come  the  prompting  to  leave  all  inferior 
things  without  anxiety  to  Him,  whose  care  over  every 
creature  is  infinite,  and  who  alone  can  know  by  what 
means  to  convey  to  the  soul  that  good  which  is  the  single 
object  of  its  desire,  both  for  itself  and  for  its  fellow-beings. 
This  trust  cannot  hinder,  but,  on  the  contrary,  it  must 
quicken,  the  individual  in  the  performance  of  every  duty. 
It  forms  the  only  sure  ground  of  fidelity.  It  elevates  the 
soul  above  the  reach  of  repining.  It  increases  its  capacity 
for  happiness,  as  well  as  its  ability  to  impart  happiness  to 
others.  It  gives  to  the  spirit  a  serene  tranquillity  that 
enables  it  to  exert  all  its  powers  most  effectively,  and  so 
becomes  in  the  highest  degree  conducive  to  its  usefulness, 
in  every  occupation  and  relation  of  life. 

We  are  brought  to  this  general  conclusion,  that  prayer 
is  that  highest  form  of  our  cooperative  activity,  which  has 
for  its  appropriate  object  the  exaltation  of  ourselves  and 
our  race  to  a  state  of  holiness,  an  object  which  is  inclusive 
of  all  those  subordinate  objects  that  may  be  conducive  to 
this  supreme  result. 

The  spirit,  however,  that  lives  in  any  degree  in  a  state 
of  harmony  with  the  divine  nature  cannot  fail  to  desire 
the  blessing  of  God  upon  its  work,  upon  that  which  is  the 
object  of  its  just  and  honest  effort,  whatever  the  nature 
of  that  effort  may  be.  A  notable  example  of  this  is  re- 
ferred to  in  the  Introduction  to  these  papers.  This  desire 
such  a  spirit  necessarily  feels,  and  longs  to  give  expression 
to  it. 

The  desire  itself,  however,  is  commonly  vague  and  indis- 
tinct, and  so  the  expression  of  it  is  often  general  and  indefi- 


306  PRA  YER. 

nite.  This  is  a  great  pity.  It  would  be  a  gain  every  way 
if  in  all  cases  a  clear  and  distinct  meaning  should  be  at- 
tached to  this  petition,  and  if  this  meaning  should  assume 
definite  expression.  On  this  point,  as  on  so  many  others, 
mechanical  science  affords  a  real  help.  We  may  here 
listen  to  its  final  lesson.  It  will  be  the  same  lesson  that 
we  heard  at  the  beginning.  In  mechanics  we  cannot  ac- 
complish any  thing  unless  our  purposes  are  in  harmony 
with  the  purposes  of  God.  The  object  of  all  study  and 
of  all  experiment  in  mechanical  pursuits,  is  to  ascertain 
those  eternal  and  unchangeable  purposes,  in  order  that 
our  own  may  be  brought  into  accord  with  them. 

Intelligent  prayer  for  the  blessing  of  God  on  our  me- 
chanical work,  whether  this  work,  as  was  the  case  with 
Robert  Stephenson,  be  a  bridge  across  an  arm  of  the  sea, 
to  be  built  on  a  plan  as  yet  untried,  or  whatever  it  may 
be,  whether  it  involve  great  or  small  responsibility,  must, 
it  is  obvious,  be  a  prayer,  first,  for  such  insight  as  shall 
enable  us  to  comprehend  all  the  conditions  and  require- 
ments of  the-  problem  ;  and  then  for  such  fidelity  and 
watchfulness  as  shall  ensure  our  compliance  with  these 
conditions  and  requirements  in  every  particular,  from  the 
greatest  down  to  the  least  and  most  insignificant.  This 
must  be  the  prayer.  And  with  this  prayer  there  must  be 
joined,  and  of  necessity  there  will  be,  since  it  is  prompted 
by  the  same  disposition,  the  earnest  study  of  these  con- 
ditions and  requirements,  and  of  the  principles  and  laws 
that  are  involved  in  our  work ;  and,  united  with  this  study, 
a  ceaseless  watchfulness,  and  the  faithful  doing  of  every 
thing  that  is  devolved  on  us  to  be  done. 

The  universal  application  of  this  lesson  is  obvious.  In 
the  verbal  revelation  we  have  imparted  to  us  the  change- 
less principles  that  are  to  govern  our  conduct  in  our  rela- 


PRA  YER.  307 

tions  to  our  fellow-beings  and  to  God ;  precisely  as  in  the 
physical  revelation  those  principles  are  made  known  to  us 
that  must  govern  our  conduct  with  relation  to  the  physi- 
cal creation.  By  obedience  to  the  former,  precisely  as  by 
obedience  to  the  latter,  our  conduct  is  brought  into  har- 
mony with  the  conduct  of  God. 

Intelligent  prayer  for  the  divine  blessing  on  our  conduct 
in  every  situation  and  station  in  life  must,  then,  be  a 
prayer,  first,  for  a  clear  knowledge  of  the  immutable  laws 
of  conduct,  for  that  complete  possession  of  them,  or  pos- 
session of  ourselves  by  them,  that  shall  enable  us  to  make 
faithful  application  of  them  to  all  the  conditions  in  which 
we  find  ourselves  placed ;  and  then  for  such  fidelity  and 
watchfulness  as  shall  ensure  our  observance  of  them  in 
every  particular,  even  the  least.  This  must  be  the 
prayer.  And  with  the  prayer,  just  as  in  the  former  case, 
there  must  be,  and  there  necessarily  will  be,  joined  that 
earnest  study  of  those  principles  of  conduct,  which  will 
enable  us  to  perceive  at  once  their  application  to  every 
case  as  it  arises ;  and,  united  with  this  study,  a  ceaseless 
watchfulness,  and  the  faithful  doing  of  every  thing  that  is 
devolved  on  us  to  be  done. 


THE   END. 


P  UBLICA  TIONS  OF  G.  P.  P  UTNAM'S  SONS. 

WORKS  BEARING  ON  THE  STUDY  OF  THE 

BIBLE. 


I.  The  Bible  of  To-Day.     By  John  W.  Chadwick.    8vo, 

cloth  extra $i  50 

"  The  need  of  some  such  work  is  keenly  felt  by  thousands  of  intelligent 
persons  who  are  not  in  a  position  to  make  an  adequate  study  of  the  elaborate 
works  in  which  this  criticism  has  written  its  comments,  yet  earnestly  desire 
to  know  what  conclusions  the  various  scholars  who  have  made  studies  of  the 
subject  have  reached." — N.  Y.  Evening  Post. 

II.  The  Bible.     What  is  it  ?    An  attempt  briefly  to  an- 
swer the  question  in  the  light  of  the  best  scholarship,  and 
in  the  most  reverent  and  catholic  spirit.     By  the  Rev.  J.  T. 
Sunderland.     i6mo,  cloth        .         .         .         .         .100 

"  The  author  aims  at  combining  the  inspirations  of  reverence  and  faith 
with  the  suggestions  of  reason  *  *  *  His  criticisms  are  scholarly, 
thorough,  and  uncompromising,  but  he  leaves  ample  room  for  a  powerful 
defence  of  the  Bible  in  its  spiritual  aspects  as  the  unfailing  depository  of 
religious  faith  and  moral  inspiration." — N.  Y.  Tribune. 

III.  Sacred  Scriptures.     Being  a  selection   of  the   more 
devout,  practical,  and  important  portions  of  the  ancient 
Hebrew  and  Christian   Scriptures  ;    to  which  are  added 
some  kindred  selections  from  the  other  sacred  scriptures 
of  the  world.     Translated,  compiled,  and  arranged  by  the 
Rev.  M.  K.  Schermerhorn,  primarily  for  his  own  use  as 
preacher  and  pastor.     Handsomely  printed  in  large,  open 
type,  in  one  octavo  volume,  cloth  extra  .         .         .     2  50 

"  The  compilation  has  been  made  with  good  judgment.  *  *  *  The 
volume  should  prove  of  great  service." — R.  HEBER  NEWTON. 

IV.  The    Present    Religious   Crisis.     By  A.   Blauvelt. 
izmo i  oo 

CHIEF  CONTENTS. — Dogmatic  Theology.  The  Inspiration  of  the  Bible. 
The  Historical  Character  of  the  Gospels.  The  Religion  of  the  Bible.  The 
Religion  of  Christ.  Religious  Repressions  and  Religious  Liberty. 

"  Mr.  Blauvelt's  style  is  clear  and  direct,  and  his  sincerity  and  earnest- 
ness of  purpose  are  made  very  plain  in  these  pages." — Gazette,  Boston. 

G.  P.  PUTNAM'S  SONS,      NEW  YORK  and  LONDON, 


PUBLICATIONS  OF  G.  P.  PUTNAM'S  SONS. 

V.  Benedicite ;  or,  Illustrations  of  the  Power,  Wis- 
dom, and  Goodness  of  God,  as  Manifested  in  his 
Works.     ByG.  Chaplin  Child,  M.D.     With  an  Intro- 
duction by  Henry  G.  Weston,  D.D.     izmo,  cloth  extra, 
beveled    .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .     2  oo 

Introduction.  The  Heavens.  The  Sun  and  Moon.  The  Planets. 
The  Stars.  Wells.  The  Winds.  Frost  and  Snow.  Winter  and  Summer. 
Nights  and  Days.  Light  and  Darkness.  Lightning  and  Clouds.  Showers 
and  Dew.  Seas  and  Flood.  Fire  and  Heat.  Etc.,  etc. 

"A  most  admirable  popular  treatise  of  natural  theology.  It  is  no  extrav- 
agance to  say  that  we  have  never  read  a  more  charming  book,  or  one  that 
we  can  recommend  more  confidently  to  our  readers  with  the  assurance  that 
it  will  aid  them,  as  none  that  we  know  of  can  do,  to 

" '  Look  through  Nature  up  to  Nature's  God.'  " — Round  Table,  N.  Y. 

VI.  Fundamental  Questions.     Chiefly  Relating  to  the 
Book  of  Genesis    and   the   Hebrew  Scriptures.     By  the 
Rev.  Edson  L.  Clark.     i2mo,  cloth         .         .         .     i  50 

This  is  a  plain,  clear,  scholarly  writing,  marked  by  great  fairness  in  argu- 
ment. The  writer  believes  that  every  substantial  truth  revealed  by  science 
will  only  broaden  and  deepen  and  strengthen  the  sublime  truths  of  the 
sacred  record. — Inter-Ocean, 

VII.  Modern  Materialism  in  its  Relations  to  Religion 
and  Theology.      By   James   Martineau,  LL.D.      New 
edition,  two  volumes  in  one.     i6mo,  cloth  extra      .     i  25 

"  The  ablest  analysis  of  Tyndall  and  his  school  of  thought  that  has  yet 
appeared." — London  Spectator. 

VIII.  Thoughts  on  the  Religious  Life.     By  Joseph 
Alden,  D.D.,  Principal  of   the  State  Normal  School,  Al- 
bany.    With  an  introduction  by  William  Cullen  Bryant. 
i6mo,  cloth  extra     .         .         .         .         .         .         .100 

A  clearly  written  and  eloquent  volume,  presenting  elevated  spiritual 
teaching,  combined  with  practical  suggestions  as  to  the  work  of  daily  life. 

"  Presents  a  great  lesson  of  holy  living  and  a  special  lesson  in  the  Gospel 
of  Christian  Charity." — S.  IREN^US  PRIME,  D.D. 

G.  P.  PUTNAM'S  SONS,  NEW  YORK  and  LONDON. 


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